Little Library Boy
by ADashOfInsanity
Summary: When he was younger, Ike met a strange child hiding in the public library. The next day he was forced to forget all about him. When it seems he will never meet the child again, chance encounters bring them crashing back together for a clash of wills, emotions, and long kept secrets... Modern AU.
1. The Children's Section

**AN: Hello, ADashOfInsanity here with the beginning of my second multi-chapter Fire Emblem story! **

**Whilst "Crystal Clarity" (my other story) contains IkexSoren, this one will mostly keep them just as close friends with no romantic implications involved. This story is also my first attempt at Fire Emblem AU and is set in a Modern context yet keeps all the magic and races from the canon setting.**

**Please tell me what you think! Feedback is always appreciated, so please enjoy the chapter and please review!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter One: The Children's Section.<strong>

Ike wasn't one for books. Books were long and unnecessarily boring however many pictures you put in them and why would you want to sit inside when you could run round the back garden hitting things with a stick? Besides, he didn't need to read books, his mother read them to him and Mist every evening before they went to sleep. He liked the stories but he didn't have to touch the book itself and he had decided he never really needed to. However that didn't stop his mother dragging him on trips to the local library. She called it a trip but Ike didn't think it really was one. Trips meant long journeys in cars or on trains to visit his father's strange friends in the city. Walking down the road and turning the corner to the library wasn't a trip, it was a walk, however its name didn't change the fact they always went on them.

Mist loved the library. She would get incredibly excited as their mother led them into the brightly coloured children's section and Mist would immediately point out the biggest and most colourful book she could find and she would sit on the squashy children's chairs and demand that she could read with her mother. Their mother always agreed and Ike, who said that as a six year old he was a big boy and could cope on his own, was allowed to wander about the children's section as long as he stayed in his mother's line of sight at all times. They went at least twice a week and by now Ike knew where all the best hiding spots in the children's section were. He knew which shelves were climbable, and where the play bricks, that were meant for the children's reading club, were secretly kept. In fact there was little he didn't know about the children's section (apart from the contents of most of the books.) Or at least he thought he did.

One afternoon, they went to the library later than usual. Their mother had been very busy that day and their father had been working late so they had to wait longer for their walk out. It was already cold and dark when they got to the library and their mother pointed out that they only had a little time today because it was five thirty and the library closed in half an hour. They didn't seem to do anything different though, so Ike continued with his usual wandering. However this time he wasn't satisfied with just remaining within the children's section.

He crept round the shelves and found himself greeted with lines upon lines of dull brown shelves full of equally dull looking books, none of which were as colourful as any in the children's section. The shelves were much taller and the chairs weren't shaped like animals and didn't look nearly as comfortable. Ike noticed that there was a set of strangely arranged chairs beside one of the radiators on the wall. Whilst most were in lines or at tables, these three chairs had made a sort of square with the radiator with each of the seats facing outwards from the square formed by their backs. Excited by the fact that this could be great little hidey-hole to explore Ike hurried over to the chairs and climbed on top of the front most chairs. He peered over the tall backs…

Only to find his new hiding spot was already taken.

There was a boy in there. Ike was pretty sure it was a boy though he did have really long hair that Ike did think was pretty girly. He stared at the child who was incredibly small and didn't look like he was very well at all. He was incredibly pale and his clothes were incredibly dirty, and they didn't look like they matched at all. The boy was wearing a very long grey jumper that would best fit an adult. It fell down to his knees and was ripped and torn in places. Ike was very surprised to see that the boy had no shoes and only one sock, which had been worn through so he could see the boy's toes.

"Hello," Ike said to the boy, wondering whether he had found a new person to play with. Exploring the library with someone else would be much more fun than doing it on his own! However the boy didn't reply to him. All he did was curl into a little ball and stare up at Ike with huge round scarlet eyes.

"Wow," Ike exclaimed, "Your eyes are so cool! They're red like a monster's!" The child amidst the chairs didn't seem think that was praise however, for his simple stare turned into a glare that clearly meant _get away from me_. However Ike was not going to give up on coaxing his new potential-friend into talking to him that easily. The hidden boy's stomach gave an unnaturally loud gurgle and suddenly Ike had an idea. He had a sandwich left in the pocket of his trousers from lunch time. He had decided to save it for later because he thought he might get hungry during the afternoon, however he hadn't eaten it and now it was collecting fluff in his pocket.

He took the sandwich out, trying to pick off all the noticeable bits of fluff and pencil-shavings and tried to hand it to the boy. However the red-eyed stranger continued to do nothing but stare at him, though his eyes did flicker back and forth from the proffered sandwich every once in a while.

"You can have it!" Ike exclaimed, excited at the fact the boy obviously wanted the sandwich, "Here take it!" He moved his hand closer and the boy flinched away. However after a few minutes of contemplating the food the boy shocked Ike by suddenly darting forwards, snatching the sandwich, before curling back into his little ball again. Ike wondered if the boy was trying to pretend to be a hedgehog, he did spend a lot of time in a ball. However he was sure hedgehogs didn't eat ham and cheese sandwiches and the boy was eating the fluffy sandwich with great gusto. He was stuffing the food into his mouth at an almost inhuman speed, exactly the type of eating that Ike always got told off for attempting! Why wasn't this boy's mum telling him off? Where was this boy's mum? Ike looked about. There wasn't anyone else in this little area, and Ike didn't think he'd seen anyone in the last area he'd been in either. How odd.

"Where's your mum and dad?" He asked the boy. However the stranger focussed more on trying to swallow the large amount of sandwich he had in his small mouth. Even when he had swallowed it though, he didn't answer Ike. Ike tried a new tact. He thought the boy wouldn't talk to strangers. It was a thing his mother always said to him, and no doubt this boy's mum would have said it too. Ike extended a small hand down the gap in the chairs. If he introduced himself, he wouldn't be stranger anymore and therefore they could talk!

"My name is Ike!" he said confidently, "I'm here with my mum and my sister. She's called Mist. My mum is called Elena and my dad is called Greil though he's not here in this place with us. We have a rabbit and two budgies!" He knelt on the chair, confident that finally he would get a response from the boy. However he was only disappointed when the boy simply finished the sandwich and continued to stare back at him. His stomach gave a loud gurgle again and Ike frowned. This boy must be really hungry!

"I don't have any more food," he said, as if apologising, "But if you come back with me to my mum she might have some! Come on, I'll take you to her, she's really nice!" He tried to give the boy his hand once more, to help him climb out of the chairs. The boy refused him and just continued to stare. His stomach gurgled even louder and he winced. Ike started to wonder whether this boy's stomach was hurting him every time it made that noise.

"You need food," Ike told him, "Come with me! We have lots and lots of food at home! I'm sure your mum and dad won't mind! You can come round for dinner!" Finally he got a response. The red-eyed boy shook his head at him and inched closer to the radiator.

"Why not?" Ike asked, "It's not that far! We live down the road!" The boy shook his head once more but now he was shaking a lot more than that one negative gesture. Ike thought he looked scared, like Mist after a nightmare, and that only made Ike want to help him even more.

"Don't be scared of me!" He protested, but all he got was a glare in return. Ok, so the boy wasn't scared, and didn't like it when Ike said he was… This was so confusing! If the boy was so hungry why didn't he come and get food? It didn't make sense! He was being perfectly friendly, why wasn't the boy talking back? It just didn't make sense, so he had to come up with another way of making friends with the boy.

"I'll come back in a few days with more food!" he said, thinking of the next time his mother would take him to the library, "I'll bring you food and you get to stay here! Then can we be friends?" The boy seemed to consider him for a few minutes before he nodded. Ike beamed.

"I'll bring you lots of sandwiches! Just you wait!" He exclaimed, before clambering off the chair. He heard his mother call from the children's section and gave the cluster of chairs a little wave.

"I'll see you soon!" The boy didn't reply but Ike took his silence for ascent.

* * *

><p>Three days later, Elena took her children to the library once more. At first the large brick building looked the same as it ever was. The brick walls were still as orange, and the windows were still full of the same posters for reading groups and notices about new books in stock. The sun was incredibly bright that day and the café beside the library had its colourful umbrellas out and the smell of chocolate ice cream was enough to send any child into a fit of wild excitement. They did not get ice cream that day, though they had been promised that if they were good they would have some next time. Mist was already saying she wanted a book about horses, Ike was jumping over the cracks in the pavement, and everything was as it had always been.<p>

Until they spotted the blood on the sliding doors.

The entrance to the library had two automatic doors which slid apart when it sensed that someone wanted to enter. However the doors were fixed in an open position and many plastic signs had been placed on the pavement around them. The signs said that cleaning was in progress here, but what they were cleaning up? Elena tried to distract her children but Ike had already spotted the splatters of red before she could tempt him away. There was more blood on the pavement than the doors and as Ike tried to peer around the large signs he was sure he saw one of the cleaners pick up a single torn black sock.

"Let's come here tomorrow instead," said their mother. She had read a notice on the library door that was too high for her children to peer at, and she now looked distinctly uncomfortable. She ushered for Ike to turn round and walk back the other way but Ike's eyes were still on the library door. His pockets were full of sandwiches, four in all, and he wanted to give them to the strange red-eyed boy. Could he wait one more day? Ike wandered after his mother feeling worried, had the boy lost his sock? And why was it near the blood? Maybe he'd find out tomorrow.

The trip tomorrow never came. They were a few paces from the library when the first gun shots fired. There was screaming, people started running up the street towards them, there were yells for the police, yells of murder. Elena managed to get the attention of one of the panicked people and ask them what was going on. The man gabbled that Greil had gone mad. He was striding up the road, fully armed, and killing anyone that got near him. The man screamed and sprinted away saying that the respected man had been possessed by demons. Elena turned to her children and told them to go and hide in the library, to go in there and not come out until she came looking for them. They nodded and she sprinted down the road, battling against the tide of terrified people.

Ike and Mist found themselves getting pushed and shoved aside, tripping over and being tripped over in equal measure. They didn't know what to do. They couldn't get to the library, there were so many people in the way, people who could trample them! They were confused and clueless.

"We'll go and ask Mum what to do!" Ike said, grabbing his sister by the arm and together they ran as fast as their little legs would carry them, going in the road if necessary to avoid the rush of people. The Saturday Farmers' Market was held near the top of their road which explained the vast number of people that were running, and then falling, around them. They met their parents half way down the road. The pavement was covered in people, lying there, not running anymore and not making a single noise. Ike stared at them and wondered what the matter was… then he heard one more gunshot.

"Mum?"

It looked like his mother and father were hugging. His father had his arms round her and a gun in one of his hands which was against his mother's back. His mother had her arms round his father, she had one of her necklaces in her hand and her other hand was on his father's shoulder. Ike approached them curiously as his father suddenly started to sob.

"Dad?" His mother's head fell onto his father's shoulder.

"Mum?" Ike felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned to see a tall thin man with long shiny black hair. Behind him was another man, a larger man in police uniform. He looked at them then at his sobbing father.

"Dad?"

It was then that he forgot everything. He never remembered the funeral in the sunshine. He never thought anything of the fact his whole world was being packed into boxes to be put into a brand new home. The little figure in black that tried to run after their removal van meant nothing to him. He wouldn't remember travelling to his new home in Crimea, or settling in and meeting his new neighbours. As far as Ike was aware he had lived in the little country hamlet in Crimea all his life. Ten years went by before he had to even consider any gap in his memory. Ten years where he never even thought of what had happened at such a young age. However, in the end the past will always rear its discontented head and the time for Ike had come to think back. Strangely this realisation of thought came in the least thought provoking location possible…

The lunch queue at high school was where he first glimpsed the familiar, yet unfamiliar, sight of wide scarlet eyes.


	2. Speculative Fiction

**AN: Thank you to Reina Ann Vilre, PalindromeIsntOne, FiniteXS, Tactician37 and STKB for reviewing!**

**There was a little confusion last chapter as to why there was blood on the library doors if Greil was on the other end of the street. Don't worry, that'll be answered in due time, though there was a big hint in the form of a sock last chapter, and another clue chapter, though Soren will explain it later if you can wait that long. **

**Also, in response to the reviews, there seems to be some thought that this will be a modern version of the original FE9/10 plot. No, this isn't wholly a modern adaptation, though main parts of the story line will remain the same, such as Lehran's Medallion and the story between Ike and Soren. You'll see this chapter that the plot lines of Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn are merged so no, this isn't a straight modernisation of the same plot.**

**But now onto chapter two! This chapter takes place ten years after the previous one. Ike has grown up, forgotten Soren, and now he is attending secondary school (or high school depending on what you prefer to call it.) This chapter is also the first time Soren speaks and the first glimpse at the modern Greil mercenaries!**

**So please enjoy, and please leave me a review! **

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Two: Speculative Fiction<strong>

"Hurry up boy! Petrol is expensive and we don't want Oscar burning up the planet!"

A hoarse bellow rang through the sleepy little suburban house. There was a sound like rumbling thunder from above as the last member of the household racketed about in a frenzied rush to get ready for the day. It was usual for them to be running late on such a hectic morning. There were books to be swept off piles, socks to be pulled out from inconvenient positions under the bed, and round after round of toast to be ejected from the noisy toaster to feed the constant rush of hungry rushing people. Ike came bounding down the stairs with his burgundy coat flapping behind him, hastily tying his usual headband into place. He let out a grunt of urgency through the jam-coated toast in his mouth and grabbed his battered satchel bag. He hurried towards the front door, pushing the clutter of wooden boxes aside, not questioning the fact that hadn't been there yesterday evening, and then gave his father a quick wave to say goodbye. He hurried out the door into the empty drive way and met up his sister on the pavement outside. Next door there was a similar state of urgency as two out of the three brothers stood on their gravel driveway, waiting for the third.

Ike and Mist stood triumphantly by Oscar's car, ready to go. They had to wait for Boyd to crash out of the house even less elegantly than Ike had. Once he had, they laughed and turned, expecting Oscar to invite them into the car even though they went through the same procedure every single day.

"I'm sorry to say you'll have to walk to school," Oscar informed them, he sounded apologetic but remained cheerful as usual, "The road is far too dangerous to go out today."

"Why?" Mist and Rolf chorused curiously. Oscar gave an exhalation somewhere between a sigh and a chuckle.

"I received a text this morning," He pulled his mobile phone from the pocket of his corduroys and showed it first to Ike and Boyd who were standing the closest to him. They peered at the little screen as Oscar tapped a few buttons, circling through the options on the flashing device. Soon he found the offending text and they were presented with a picture of a shining black police car with the caption:

"**HONK HONK RIVAL!"**

"I don't know whether to worry more for his safety or that of the general public." Oscar sighed, "I suppose if Geoffrey thought it was good idea, it is not to be questioned"

"We're fine with walking," Mist said brightly but hastily. They were running late as it was and if they continued discussing the safety of Oscar's ever-troubling friend they were going to be even later. There were no complaints as they set off down the path. It was very generous of Oscar to give them lifts everyday anyway so they were fine to walk just this once. Mist and Rolf hurried ahead of the other three as they set off down the road. The three bringing up the rear remained silent throughout the twenty minute walk. Boyd and Ike were never at their most sociable first thing in the morning, and Oscar simply enjoyed the calming walk and the fact they could avoid all the traffic if on foot.

Oscar waved them off at the school gates and they all hastily parted to find their own classrooms and their own friends. It wasn't as if they weren't close, but due to the fact they were constantly round each other's houses every single day of the week, it was nice to keep different company in school hours.

And what 'different' company you could keep at this school!

This particular high school was the biggest and most controversial school in Crimea for one particular reason. It was the only 'International' school in Tellius. The students and teachers came from every corner of the continent and then returned there at the end of every day. The school seemed an impossibility. None of the students boarded there yet some lived as far as the snowiest reaches of Daein, or the deepest forests of Gallia. Many Crimean students were mystified by how their classmates got to and back from school everyday however when they inquired how it was done, the only answer they got back was '_sophisticated warp magic'_, so they were left as confused as ever.

The range of subjects taught was just as diverse as the students they were taught to. Ike's timetable today included a few of the basic subjects that everyone had to take. He had Mathematics and Tellian Literature after lunch and third period was Geography. However there were many other subjects you wouldn't find being taught at your run-of-the-mill academy. First period today was Swordsmanship for Ike, followed by a break before Laguz-Beorc Combat Training. The school was often dubbed a military school as well for they put a great emphasis on their students being able to cope, or become victorious, on the battlefield. They learnt with traditional weaponry, for more modern inventions, such as guns, were never used in real war. To fight through the mastery of your own weapon, be it axe, sword or lance, was far more honourable that wielding a heartless mechanical killing machine That was why guns were a banned weapon across the entire continent and you needed an incredibly special license to even own one. Every student was very proud of his or her own prowess with their weapon of choice. Of course those that didn't wish to fight didn't have to. Although she attended basic swordplay lessons, Mist focussed more of her attention on her Arcane Medicine lessons because she wanted to be a nurse, not a warrior. However she did not go down the route of being a mage, which involved taking a lot more 'arcane' lessons, because she wanted to partially be able to defend herself at close range.

With so many nationalities and so many roles, there were bound to be tensions between different groups of people. Most races and nationalities kept to themselves even though inter-group mixing was highly encouraged throughout the school. However many posters promoting inter-species comradeship there were, most did like to remain with what they were comfortable with. Laguz stayed in little groups, usually of their own tribes. The beorc sought comfort with those of their own nation. It took a brave few to break the social barriers but it had been done by the tiny minority. Even on a smaller scale there were differences. Everyone who had been at the school for more than three years could remember the clash between the Beast Combat and Arcane Arts classes. The Arcane Arts class, which was the practical lesson for magic users, had taken a large outside area to train their fire magic in. What they hadn't realised that it was also the space that the largest class of Beast Combat liked to use. The cats and tigers hadn't looked to see if anyone had been using their spot before they had charged out to train with each other. Most of them had been transformed at the time and they managed to scare the young mages silly. A lot of burnt fur and bites and scratches had been the result of that particular disaster.

However conflict and disputes were daily occurrences that everyone had grown used to. Although you could stop the individual offender, it was harder to sway the minds of hundreds in the same direction. The school had its fair share of the usual type of student-conflicts too, bullying, some theft, and those were the ones that got the most individual attention.

"Ike!" shouted an eager voice from the great double doors at the school's entrance. Ike left Boyd with a quick 'see you later' and hurried over to where his best friend stood by the entrance with his usual 'I've got news for you' smirk.

"Hey Ranulf," he replied to the smirking cat, who always seemed to have far too much energy for a Monday morning, "You seem happy, did you have a Skrimir-free weekend?"

"No," Ranulf sighed, "Plenty of Skrimir. The King decided we should go fishing in an attempt to teach him patience...that failed on colossal proportions."

"Unlucky," Ike said sympathetically.

"Well, I have more current news for you," Ranulf reported, his tone brightening, "The next lot of results came out on the top floor notice-board this morning, and guess where yours truly came out of all the cats in our year!"

"First?" Ike asked tentatively, wondering if Ranulf was just pandering for flattery or was genuinely curious about what he thought.

"Of course," Ranulf said with a laugh, "You should have seen the look on Lethe's face! I thought she was going to bite my ears off in rage! And talking of rage, you might want to check your results later, that Daein gang, the _Dawn Brigade_ or whatever they're calling themselves these days, they've set up camp right in front of the notice-board because Micaiah is having a right rage about her results. Pelleas tried to comfort her but Sothe shut him in a cupboard again and took the job on himself."

"Micaiah is angry?" Ike asked. He couldn't think of a person who was less likely to have a tantrum. He and Micaiah weren't on the best terms, mostly due to Sothe's sudden obsession with him a year ago, and even though that had just been a phase Micaiah hadn't quite forgiven Ike yet, even though he had nothing to do with it. So he may have cured Sothe's anti-laguz opinions but that was it! He didn't ask to be obsessed over! When they met, Micaiah was only mildly annoyed at Ike, she was never particularly angry. Ike had never seen her angry so the idea she would rage over something like result rankings seemed fairly absurd.

"Didn't you hear what happened with Micaiah and the last lot of rankings?" Ranulf asked as they made their way into school and down a long carpeted corridor lined with posters saying things like 'no chewing gum' or 'respect your fellow students'.

"No," Ike replied, "What happened?"

"She came second place in every single subject she took," Ranulf said, a note of glee behind his voice, "And not only that, she came second place in every subject..."

"To the same person!" Ike interrupted, suddenly remembering what had happened. How could he have forgotten? It had been all over the school having taken everyone by surprise. Micaiah was one of the best and brightest, not only in the year, but in the entire school. She had the uncanny talent of revising just the right topics for each of their tests, as if she could foresee what was going to be on the papers before she even sat them. Therefore of course it had come as a shock when she only came second in all the subjects she had taken, however it was even more shocking when the person who took first place on the same tests had been the same person too. It was normal for people to be better at one subject than another, so their rankings would be completely different for each subject. However this person was the best at everything they took, even beating Micaiah in the process! Now that had been shocking news.

"Well it's happened again," Ranulf said, "She's consistently second again, and it's the same person who's stolen first in every subject they both take."

"Who are they?" asked Ike, sounding amazed that someone could be quite so clever. Some of the tests they sat were purposefully incredibly difficult and if they had beaten Micaiah...they must have scored full-marks on at least half the tests!

"Some guy named Soren apparently" Ranulf replied, shrugging.

"Never heard of him," Ike replied as they ascended the stairs up to the first floor and took a right down yet another corridor.

"Me neither," Ranulf responded, "The rankings didn't list his class, nationality, or even his surname! I've heard some strange rumours about him, but that's all I've got."

"Well he's a mage if he's taking the same tests as Micaiah," Ike pointed out.

"Obviously," was Ranulf's response as they entered the classroom. They left the conversation there as they joined the rest of their class.

* * *

><p>Just because they had finished talking about it didn't mean the rest of their year had. All morning Ike kept hearing murmurs and mutters of this 'Soren' figure. There were some pretty colourful tales about him, all of which Ike didn't find believable in the slightest. The one that was repeated the most, with the most enthusiasm, was the apparent fact that 'Soren', whoever he was, lived in the school. Rumour had it that he was in school every day, and had never taken a day off sick. However, despite his flawless attendance, nobody had ever seen him enter the school in the morning, and no one had ever seen him leave it once the final bell had rung. The more imaginative amongst the rumour-mongers painted Soren as a silent creature of the shadows who simply disappeared into the darkest corners of the school as soon as classes were over. Apparently he never spoke to anyone and merely lived alone, the school spectre who wandering the corridors in the depths of the night with blood-red eyes that shone like torches. Lots of people said he was the ghost of a dead student come back to haunt the school. Ike said that was complete rubbish. He was probably just some really shy student who didn't like to draw attention to himself and therefore didn't. Still, he couldn't help but remain curious about this mysterious figure.<p>

Lunchtime was when that curiosity ended.

He and Ranulf headed down to the cafeteria together, both having had Geography last lesson. Having no interest in the main trade routes through Begnion, Ike had found the lesson particular dull and had spent more time staring out the window at the mounted training that was going on around and above the stables visible out the third floor window. Even that wasn't enough to keep him entertained throughout the entire hour so he was very relieved when finally the lunch bell rang and he sprint out the class at full speed. He and Ranulf joined the chattering masses in the corridor which dispersed into their separate classrooms whilst the remaining, who bought school lunches, filed into the cafeteria.

"There better be decent pudding today," Ranulf exclaimed with a sigh.

"You've got a packed lunch," Ike pointed out, looking at the plastic Tupperware pot that Ranulf was holding in both hands.

"Yeah, but you never eat your dessert," Ranulf replied, "No one should let good food go to waste...especially if contains cream!" Ike rolled his eyes in exasperation but Ranulf simply leisurely strolled off to find them a table. Ike contemplated simply not getting a dessert, he didn't even like sweet foods, though you did save money if you bought a drink, meal and dessert together rather than the separate items. No, just to annoy Ranulf he was going to avoid the dessert, the cat wouldn't be getting any cream today. He picked and paid for his lunch without any fuss before turning round to see which table Ranulf had chosen.

However who is eye caught on first was certainly not Ranulf.

Sitting right at the back of the cafeteria, at a rectangular table designed for ten, was a single lone figure. Ike looked about and saw that nobody was paying attention to them and it seemed nobody was making any sort of move to go and sit with them. The back of cafeteria was a little darker than the front where the windows were placed, but that was no reason for everyone to miss that one very obvious figure. Ike frowned. He could think of only one reason why someone would hide away at the back of a room on their own. They were trying to avoid people and in this school that was generally due to bullying or someone being prejudice against them. Ike was not going to let that stand.

Ignoring Ranulf's confused shout of where was he going, Ike strode straight through the cafeteria straight into the shadowy corner where the figure sat. He deliberately took the seat two away from the boy, too close would seem pressurising and too far would make no difference at all, and then turned to look at the lone boy.

At a single glance, the boy would seem rather strange looking. His black hair was long to the point of girlishness and he had tied it into a long loose ponytail that trailed down his back. Ike couldn't see his face, for the boy, Ike was pretty sure it was a boy, was reading with his head down so his bangs obscured any sight of the side of his head. He sat at the table with a rather heavy looking book placed next to a plate full of the cafeteria's cheese, tomato and tuna pasta bake. Ike couldn't see what the book was about so focussed back on the strange boy's appearance.

He was dressed darkly in a grey roll-neck jumper that was slightly too big for him due to the fact he had a belt round his waist to keep it in place which gave the impression he was wearing it like some sort of tunic. He wore black jeans that were also far too big for him and also required a belt. The only thing he wore that seemed to fit him was the long black coat he wore, even though he was indoors and it was quite warm here. He also wore a white fingerless glove, just the right one for some reason. So, he wore strange dark clothes, sat in a dark corner, maybe that was why people were inclined not to sit with him, however that wasn't going to put Ike off.

"Hi," he said, in the friendliest voice he could muster. The boy raised his head and turned to stare at him, but said nothing. However Ike was little too taken aback to be bothered by this... Dark shadowy corner, dark clothing, definitely academically-minded if he was reading even in his lunch break...and now large red eyes... Was this? Could this be? Well the boy definitely looked solid so there was no chance he was a ghost or a spectre. However all the other clues definitely pointed to one very definite conclusion...

"Are you Soren?" he suddenly blurted out. The boy gave him a particularly withering glare.

"Yes," he replied, sounding impatient and annoyed. Maybe he'd been asked that a lot today.

"I'm..." Ike began, but Soren cut him off.

"You are Ike, I already know." He went back to his book and continued to eat.

"Err, great," Ike replied a little unsure of how to continue, "So...why are you sitting back here on your own?" Soren sent him another glare but he soon seemed to realise that his venomous looks simply weren't working on this new arrival.

"Because I wish to," he replied curtly, "I am at my most productive whilst alone. Here is a better question. Why are you sitting here and insisting on bothering me?" Ike was starting to consider that the reason Soren sat alone was not his dark demeanour but his incredibly sharp tongue. However he met Soren's harsh glare with his own gaze and didn't back down.

"I thought you looked lonely over here on your own, so I came to see whether you were alright or not." He answered honestly. Soren was silent for a few minutes before he answered that. His glare never wavered but it seemed he was giving Ike's answer some thorough thinking through.

"I am not lonely and I am perfectly 'alright'," was his eventual reply, "I am here because I choose to be. Now your inquiry has been answered, I would prefer it if you would take your friendly nobility elsewhere."

"Nobility?" Ike asked, sounding confused. Nobility was what they talked about in History lessons, the ruling classes and all that sort of thing. They had nobles in their school, and ex-nobles too. Poor Pelleas, if there hadn't been such a thing as DNA testing he never would have known there wasn't a drop of Goldoan blood in him, and then he still would have had a family! Being a noble seemed tough enough let alone finding out you weren't actually one after all. But what had nobility got to do with him, he, Ike, wasn't nobility!

"You think you are being noble," was Soren's scathing answer, "Coming to the aid of those you feel are less fortunate. You feel that everyone requires the bond of friendship to live and wish to make that ideal a reality. So if you wish to continue in this belief, find someone else to bother with your ideals."

"You don't have any friends!" Ike exclaimed in shock. It was the only conclusion he could come to. Soren thought he was wrong for thinking friendship was necessary, and therefore that meant Soren thought friendship wasn't necessary and because he was sitting here on his own...that meant Soren didn't have any friends! His next conclusion was a little stranger.

"What lessons do you have next?"

Soren stared at him, a noticeable scowl on his face. It was then Ike noticed the strange red-mark on his forehead, though when he realised it was there he didn't know why he'd missed it before. It looked a bit like a curved backwards 'N' with a line through it, what could it possibly mean? It seemed a bit too large and strangely shaped to be a birthmark.

"I do not have friends, and I prefer it that way." Soren said, his voice was dead-pan but there was flickering irritation in his eyes, "And if I tell you which lessons I have next, you will leave me alone, agreed?"

"Agreed," Ike replied hastily. He may have to leave Soren now but that didn't mean they didn't share lessons. Soren was in his year after all!

"I have Mathematics and Tellian Literature this afternoon," Soren reported, "Before you get any ridiculous hopes up however, I have to inform you that I take _Higher_ Mathematics and _Higher_ Tellian Literature, so there is no chance that we will be meeting again. Goodbye." He turned away from Ike once more and moved his attention back to his book. Ike took that as his prompt to leave and obediently went and join Ranulf at his table instead. He waved off Ranulf's questions and began to eat in silence. So that was Soren. Intelligent, sharp tongued, friendless and red-eyed... Those eyes though, usually red eyes would seem quite frightening, like something out of a horror film but...Soren's just weren't. He knew that Soren hadn't wanted him to be there and had glared at him with those bloody eyes all the way through but... Ike wanted to talk to him again, he couldn't understand why, but he felt like he had to. There was a new mantra in his mind. He needed to see the boy with red eyes again. He needed to return and visit the boy with red eyes again. He felt like he had...promised it, that he had made a commitment just by talking to Soren once...

He needed to visit the boy with the red eyes again.

But why? If Soren didn't want to they were probably never going to see each other again.

It would only take a few hours for Ike to see how wrong that was.


	3. Factual Reference

**AN: Thank you to STKB, PalindromeIsntOne, and SSBBFIREEMBLEMLOVER for reviewing! Usually I wouldn't update a fanfiction unless the latest chapter had received five reviews. However the response on deviantart for chapter two was so good I felt like I had to write the next chapter as soon as possible. It also made little sense to post it on there and not here.**

**So, onto chapter three! This chapter Ike encounters Soren for the second time, though we all know it's technically his third. As the story progresses Soren has a job interview to attend and I'm sure it's no surprise where he's applying for work. What can Ike learn from the series of questions and answers an interview will provide? Will it help him learn more about Soren or will Soren manage to get his job without divulging too much about himself? You'll have to read on and find out.**

**So please enjoy, and please leave me a review! (More reviews mean faster updates after all!)**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three: Factual Reference<strong>

Ike yawned and piled his books up by his bed. He'd do his Geography homework after dinner; he should at least experience the joy of Oscar's amazing food before he condemned himself to the boredom of Begnion's essential trade routes. He sat down and took his shoes off before lying back on his bed and staring at the blissfully blank ceiling.

That afternoon had been exhausting. Someone had decided, somewhere in the world, that Mathematics was an essential subject that all students should be tortured with. Sure Ike understood all the basics, adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, he was good with fractions and percentages too, but why someone had decided to invent something like _algebra_ was absolutely beyond him! Algebra, and Triga...Trigo...Trigon... He couldn't remember how you even said the goddess-damned word! But that was beside the point. He could think of no real reason why he'd have to use any of that complicated maths in real life! He never had to work out what the square root of x was when he went grocery shopping with his father! Addition, yes, percentages, yes, but he hadn't needed to work out how tall trees were in the supermarket! He was pretty sure his father never needed to use simultaneous equations, whatever they were supposed to be, to do his job and Ike just couldn't see the point of teaching things that simply weren't needed!

"Ike! Come here! Dad wants to speak to us!"

He was roused from his Mathematics-related grumbling by the sound of his sister calling up the stairs. He immediately got to his feet, left his room, and hurried down to meet her. His father and sister stood in the hallway next to the large stack of boxes that Ike had to dodge on his way out that morning. Ike gave them a curious glance as he came to stand next to his sister. He knew better than to ask what was in them however, it was probably something to do with his father's work and he knew he would receive no answers about that until his father deemed he was old and mature enough to hear them.

"We will be having a visitor," their father told them, "Ideally a new employee if he proves up to scratch. He'll be here for an interview in ten so either make yourself hospitable or stay away from my study for an hour or so."

"What job will he do?" Mist asked.

They received a very euphemistic answer every time they asked what anyone in their little hamlet did for their father's business. There was 'He/She will work for me', which they assumed meant they were trained to fight. Then there was 'He/She will help about the area', which was a non-fighting role. They knew the basics of what their father did for a living. He owned a company of men for hire. Everyone who lived near them, the other five houses in their little hamlet, were in Greil's company. Next door were Oscar, Boyd and Rolf, all of which wanted to work for Greil even if Oscar was the only one who did it. Besides them were Shinon and Gatrie, who were the only people who could really bear each other's company and therefore lived together. Round a corner was Titania's house and then Rhys' bungalow which stood opposite three large buildings that had been labelled 'storehouses'. Ike was sure that was where they kept all their weapons. The jobs for the company varied from body-guard duties to being riot-controllers to transporting top-secret things in the middle of the night. Ike was very eager to join their ranks but his father was adamant that he was not going to engage in any dangerous work until he had at least finished school, and that was not for another two years.

"We've been receiving a lot more jobs recently so Titania and I have been getting less time to sort the finances," their father said grimly, "So we're hiring ourselves someone to deal with the numbers." Quite surprised they had actually got an explanation this time, Ike and Mist didn't say anything in reply.

"I'll be in my study getting the books out," their father continued, "If he arrives before I'm finished. Take him to my study. Be welcoming, do not freak him out before he'd used to the place." He gave a pointed look at Mist who looked shamefaced. When Rhys had joined them she'd practically leapt on him in welcome (they had met before) and knocked the poor man to the floor. Ike didn't think Mist would do that to a stranger though. Their father had nothing to be worried about.

* * *

><p>Precisely ten minutes had passed when the visitor finally arrived. Surprised by the new arrivals dead-on accuracy, Ike hurried to the front door as his father had not immerged from his study just yet. He dodged the boxes and opened the door wondering what strange new person he was about to meet.<p>

"Good afternoon, I am here for a job interview with..."

Ike blinked in surprise as the person on the doorstep stopped talking very abruptly. Blue eyes met red eyes, the visitor scowled.

"I'm assuming that the 'Greil' I am meant to be seeing is your father," Soren said curtly.

"Yeah," Ike replied, "He said he had a visitor but he didn't say it was you," He found himself smiling. He had met up with Soren again without even doing anything! So much for Soren's declaration that they would never meet again, if Soren got the job they would meet again nearly every day! Soren would be in his house and they would have plenty of chances to talk to each other even if Soren avoided him at school! And who knew, maybe he could learn a little more about Soren himself if he was allowed to listen in to his father's interview.

"Come in!" he said cheerfully, remembering that he had been instructed to be hospitable, "Would you like a drink?"

"I am here for a job interview," Soren sharply reminded him, "Not a social occasion,"

"Yes, but still..." Ike couldn't see why the mage insisted on staying so devoutly icy. All he'd done was offer him a drink! That was basic courtesy wasn't it? Soren had entered his home, he had to wait a little while for his father to emerge from upstairs and it only made sense to have conversation and drinks. Ike couldn't help but notice Soren was still wearing the same clothes he had worn to school that day except that he had done his high-collared coat up, which made him look overall a lot smarter. Even though the afternoon was becoming quite cold, Soren still only wore the one glove. Ike was about to ask the reason behind this fashion choice when his father's voice boomed from his study.

"Ike! Was that the door?"

"Yes!" he shouted back, before turning back to Soren, "I guess that means he's ready to see you now?"

"Evidently," Soren replied, before following him up the stairs.

* * *

><p>Ike knew that eavesdropping was wrong. He knew he was going to get told off if he was caught doing it and he didn't know who it would be scarier to be scolded by, Soren or his father! However despite any misgivings he was determined to do exactly what he was warning himself against. He was just too interested. Soren wasn't going to open up and talk about himself in any sort of casual conversation, Ike knew that much about him already. Soren wouldn't have a choice in an interview though! Of course his father would want to know what sort of person Soren was before he thought to employ him. He would no doubt ask plenty of questions about Soren's personality, what achievements he had accomplished, perhaps some details about Soren's opinions on various matters to judge his character. By eavesdropping on this interview Ike could learn so much about Soren. That was a chance he shouldn't miss. The annoying thing was, when he had found a comfortable spot next to his father's study's door, and the interview had actually begun, Soren seemed to know of everything he had just been thinking about. He was giving very round-about answers, never quite answering the question but always staying on topic. It was if he was challenging Ike's father, silently proclaiming he wouldn't give enough about himself to prove any worth but saying enough to get through the factual process of getting himself a job.<p>

"How long have you been in education?"

It was a simple question. Ike had heard his father already proclaim that Soren was younger than he had expected, to which Soren had curtly replied that he didn't think age had any relevance to the job at hand as long as you had basic numerical skills. He had added 'sir' to some of his sentences, which was some relief. Ike now knew that Soren could be polite when he wanted to, but obviously didn't want to in Ike's case.

"I have been educated since I was four years old."

There it was again, Soren's round-about way of answering questions. Surely the answer was simple? Most people started school when they were five and that meant, if Soren was the same age as he was, the simple answer was 'eleven years'. Why didn't Soren just say that? Was there really a difference between being educated and being in education? Well Ike supposed you could be home-tutored, but there was nothing wrong in declaring that, so why didn't Soren?

"I'm not the sort to try the little games they play in interviews like describe yourself as a food etc," Ike heard his father say, "So let's get to the point. Why do you want this job?"

"To earn money," Soren replied, "I will not play games either sir. I will not confess some false dream of working for a force-for-hire company; I seek employment because I need to sustain a living, put food on the table etc. With small businesses there is a great chance of a more vital role and therefore the pay may end up higher than larger firms where I will only become a number in the payroll system."

"Well I admire a man with clear aims."

That was honest, bluntly and undeniably honest. However it didn't seem as strange as it should after Soren's obvious secrecy. Ike could see already that Soren was the sort who spoke only for benefit. He would not butter up his words if he didn't have to, and he concealed his true intentions when it suited him. He must be confident that he would get the job because he wasn't playing the system; he was completely defying everything they had learnt about job interviews in school!

"It says on your CV you have had previous employment," Greil said as Ike shifted slightly by the door.

"Yes, I have been employed in various ventures in school. I have done a great deal of secretarial work and have been responsible for producing documents the school wishes to give to students. These have been everything from letters informing of school trips to awareness campaigns. For instance, I created all the publications for the 'Say No to Olivi Grass' campaign a few months ago, which the school paid me for."

"The 'Say No to Olivi Grass' campaign leaflets gave my daughter nightmares," Ike's father informed Soren. Ike suddenly remembered the leaflets they were talking about. Those flyers had been horrifying! There was a picture of a crazed cat laguz standing over the mangled body of another cat laguz who was horrifyingly disfigured. Over the image was large orange writing saying 'OVERDOSES COST LIVES'. Mist had found one entirely by accident, they were only given to the laguz, and the sight of the horrific front cover had utterly traumatised her. The campaign was very effective however, in fact some of the younger cats and tigers wouldn't dare touch an orange pouch let alone if it actually had the overly-powerful steroid in it! And Soren was responsible for that?

"I do not believe your daughter was my target audience sir," was all the mage responded with, clearly unabashed that he had created the most gruesome school publication ever made, "I also worked briefly in a bar, if you'd take another look at my CV."

"Yes," Greil replied, "It is good to see you have attempted a range of experiences. But why were you there for only... a week and a half?" Ike heard Soren shift in his chair.

"I lectured one of the bar regulars about the how his over-indulgence in alcoholic beverages was heavily damaging his liver. I was let go because it seems Calill's bar cares more for its income than the health and longevity of its customers. Also the regular started a fight after I had lectured him and it was deemed my fault." Ike thought his father must be showing some interest in this encounter because his next question was very specific but also very job-focussed.

"So if you encountered this same alcoholic whilst working, how would that affect your productivity?"

"Why would I meet this same alcoholic if I was managing your finances?" Soren asked, "I would imagine my work would be located in an office-like arrangement and not one that requires much personal contact."

"Theoretically speaking how would you respond?" Greil replied, "Though you must be aware, if you are still working here when you come of age, we may pay you extra if you seek extra employment through use of your mage-abilities."

"I was aware," Soren replied, "And theoretically speaking I would treat the drunken idiot with the courtesy used when dealing with any other customer. I would only speak my thoughts about him after full payment has been received."

Ike jumped as suddenly his father started to laugh. At first he was surprised that his father was actually tell Soren he would employ him for a combat role in his force-for-hire company. Soren was quite short and skinny; he looked like one decent punch could knock him to the ground. If Ike didn't know that Soren was an incredibly talented mage he would've called him fairly vulnerable. Still, as a mage, he would be vulnerable, so he would have to be protected anyway. His father however thought it was good idea and now he was actually laughing as if Soren had told him a particular funny joke. Ike supposed that it was a little amusing that Soren would make sure he had a man's money before openly insulting them, it meant Soren could get his wages, and express himself all at the same time. It was tactically a win-win situation for him. Ike smiled, it actually seemed like a very Soren-like thing to do, though he hadn't really known Soren long enough to know what was 'Soren-like' yet.

Suddenly Ike jerked to attention when he heard his name being mentioned.

"Someone you may have to work with is my son, Ike. I want to give him a thorough grounding on how the company works, which includes the financial side of things. What do you think about working with him?"

"I would prefer it if he wasn't outside the door when I answer this question," Soren replied. Ike leapt back from the door in surprise. Soren knew he was there?

"Yes, I believe you've heard enough Ike," His father knew he was there all the time too? Well, he had completely failed at being stealthy. Perhaps he should've asked Sothe for lessons when he had the chance. He didn't know anyone else who was in the Roguery class who could. However that was besides the thought. He had been given his invitation to go away and he probably should. He did as he was told and decided to go out into the garden. He planned to poke his head over the garden wall and ask Boyd if he wanted to spar.

* * *

><p>About an hour later, in which Boyd had cheated in their spar by using his training hand-axe instead of his usual weapon, Ike was left alone once more as Boyd climbed back over the wall. He looked upwards where he knew the window to his father's study was and wondering what was taking them so long. Impatient, he went back into the house through the kitchen door. It was then when he heard more voices than he had certainly left the house hearing. The tones were unmistakably those of Titania and Shinon, and by their volume, they were having an argument. This was fairly commonplace, though why they had taken it inside their family's house, Ike had to wonder. Usually he would walk out into the driveway to see Shinon shouting at Titania through her car's driver-side window. However if they had brought the argument inside this house, it meant only Ike's father could be the one to solve it. Ike wondered whether Shinon had ended up drunk in any inappropriate places again, because that was what it had been all about last time he had stirred Titania into such a rage.<p>

They seemed to be heading in the direction of his father's study so Ike hastily followed them. The walls were muffling what they were saying and he wanted to know what the problem was this time. He hurried up the stairs just as Shinon barged open the door to his father's study, without any invitation, and suddenly proclaimed:

"You!"

Ike joined them to see that Shinon was staring at Soren in utmost fury, whilst Soren was simply staring back at him with his usual disdain. Obviously they had seen each other before if Shinon had recognised Soren straight away, but when could they have possibly met?

"Is this the man you lectured about the effects of alcohol in Calill's bar?" Greil asked Soren. His tone was serious but his eyes were merry, it seemed he already knew the answer to his question.

"Yes," Soren replied, as Shinon pulled a disgusted face. Ike was rather surprised. Soren had stood up to a drunken Shinon? He had thought no one would dare associate with the marksman when he was at his most vile. He had met Shinon a few times after he had returned home from one of his bar crawls, and the marksman wasn't a pretty sight. He cursed obscenely at air, insulting anything that dared moved in his presence. He stank of beer, spirits and greasy take-away food that had done nothing to appease his drunkenness. He often had a lot of drink down himself and had to be supported by an equally drunk, but usually lipstick and glitter-covered, Gatrie. Ike usually contented himself with disapproving looks in this sort of situation, but if Soren had actually tried to reprimand Shinon for his horrific ways. Well, Ike had gained a new level of respect for him.

Shinon evidently wasn't as impressed at meeting the man who had previously reprimanded him though.

"What's that little snooty-nosed whelp doing here?" he spat, "Brought him here to council me have you? Think he knows better than me do you? Do you?" Soren made to reply, but Greil beat him to it.

"He's the company's new finance manager," was his reasonable and level-toned answer. Ike got the idea if Soren had replied first the response wouldn't be quite so neutral and probably quite insulting on Shinon's part. Ike almost wished Soren had spoken first, he'd liked to have seen how Shinon would react, but evidently it wasn't to be.

"Now," his father continued, addressing both Titania and Shinon "We will take this heated discussion outside the house whilst Ike and our new employee can get to know each other." Ike glanced at him and then Soren who had just made a definite noise of objection.

"Sir, your son and I have already m..." Soren was interrupted.

"I expect you two to know a bit about each other by the time I get back from dealing with these two," Greil said firmly before turning his back of them and marching, with Shinon and Titania, down the stairs and out the door.

After the door had slammed shut after the three adults, the only sound to be heard in the entire house was the distant notes of Mist singing a pop song in the kitchen downstairs. Ike turned to Soren and stared at him. Soren stared straight back. The near-silence continued for a few minutes as Mist continued to sing something about a broken heart. Ike thought she must be washing up, she always sung whilst washing up. The silence between the two teens in the study continued on for about five minutes until Soren finally broke the period of tense waiting.

"Your sister is not the best singer of particularly fast musical numbers," he commented, casting an eye down the stairs.

"No she really isn't," Ike replied with a laugh. They fell silent once more. Ike was wondering when they were going start 'getting to know each other', as his father had told them to do. He didn't think Soren was going to start talking about himself anytime soon, so it was better if he started the conversation. What should he say?

"We could take turns and ask each other questions?" he suggested. Soren seemed to consider him but he gave no spoken answer.

"You can go first," Ike offered, hoping that would entice him into cooperating, Soren said nothing, "Or I can go first..." Ike continued, wondering what he was supposed to do now. Well, it never hurt that much just to charge straight into things, well, not in conversations anyway, so here he went...

"What subjects do you take at school?" he asked, starting on something basic. It seemed to work, for Soren finally said something.

"Higher Mathematics, Higher Tellian Literature, Advanced Geography, Advanced History, Arcane Arts, Arcane Studies, Further Arcane Studies, Arcane Medicine, Co-operative Combat and Religious Studies," Soren listed effortlessly, "I also take as extra-curricular activities Roguery, Politics and my Secretarial work. Occasionally I participate Sports lessons."

"That's a lot!" Ike exclaimed. Surely there wasn't enough time in a week for that many subjects? He was sure he only took half that many subjects and he felt like he received far too much work, especially homework. Did Soren do nothing but work? Also, he had just got a job! How did he have the time for that as well? Soren clearly thought nothing of it though, because he returned Ike's shocked exclamation with a question of his own.

"Why don't you share your academic studies then?" he replied, there was a challenge in his tone that made perfectly clear to Ike that Soren was not going to give information about himself if Ike wasn't going to in equal measure.

"Tellian Literature," Ike began, counting on his fingers, "Maths, Geography, History, Religious Studies, Advanced Swordsmanship, Co-operative Combat, Sports and Beorc-Laguz Relations ...wait..." Ike stared at Soren in shock. The mage simply raised an inquiring eyebrow at him.

"You don't take Beorc-Laguz Relations, do you?" Ike asked him, still sounding surprised.

"No, I do not," Soren replied.

"Isn't it a compulsory subject?" Ike asked. He thought it was anyway, everyone had to take Beorc-Laguz Relations. It was one of the school rules that it was compulsory because the lesson was all about understanding and getting along with the other race. There were no exams or qualifications at the end of the course, but it was meant to give them a more rounded perspective on life and their fellow beings...or at least that was what the teachers said it was all about. There were lots of talks from guest speakers from all over Tellius and they spent a lot of time learning about traditions and lifestyles and why attitudes related were the way they currently were. It was quite interesting, but also a lot of fun. It was one of the lessons Ike had with Ranulf and when they did group work they always made sure to pick the craziest and most exciting people to work with.

"It is a compulsory subject, but I do not attend it," Soren informed him, dragging Ike away from his thoughts, "I requested permission from the Headmaster to use those wasted hours for more beneficial studies instead, and he agreed." There was another moment of silence following Soren's explanation. Ike wondered how Soren had managed to meet with the Headmaster. He was a busy and illusive man who showed up for the end of term big assembles and at various prize giving ceremonies, but seemed never to be around at other times. He held a very official role in Begnion apparently and that took up most of his time even though he was very fond of his international school.

As the silence continued, Soren seemed to grow impatient.

"I thought we were asking each other questions on your father's request," he reminded Ike, "It is currently your turn if we are doing this consecutively,"

"Of course," Ike said quickly, " What...What is your favourite food?" He couldn't really think of anything else after school subjects to ask. He had found out about Soren through school so it seemed to be the logical place to start. Maybe he should have asked what Soren's favourite subject was. Oh well, it was too late, he had already asked another question. He looked inquiringly at Soren who seemed to be considering his question.

"Ham and cheese sandwiches," Soren replied. He stared at Ike, as if expecting some sort of reaction. He stopped when he obviously didn't get the response he was hoping for.

"What are your aspirations for the future?" he asked, as if wanting to move on swiftly. Ike had to admit he had chosen a good question, why didn't he think of that?

"Well, I want to be part of my father's company," he began, "And maybe I'll learn to ride a motorbike; that would be fun and I wouldn't have to walk down all those roads to get into Melior every day. What about you? What do you want to do when you're older?"

"I would like a stable income and a space of my own," Soren said. He turned to face the stairs as he spoke and it was immediately evident why. The argument outside had obviously come to some sort of conclusion for there was the unmistakable sound of the front door slamming closed and of loud footsteps coming up the stairs. Ike's father had returned which meant their time to get to know each other was up, and though Ike would have happily continued, Soren seemed keen to stick to their deadline.

"What was going on?" Ike asked his father, wondering what the dispute about and how it had been solved.

"Shinon scraped Titania's car and took off some of the paintwork," Greil replied, "It has been agreed that Shinon will give Titania the money to pay for the re-painting next time he is paid."

"Surely sir, it is wiser just to deduct the money from his pay and add it hers to cover the costs," Soren suggested, "Then he cannot spend the money before he is required to give it to her."

"That is a good idea," Greil confirmed, turning to address the mage, Ike couldn't help but notice that Soren looked incredibly small in front of his father. He seemed on the petite side standing next to Ike, but he was practically child-like next to his father and it seemed rather bizarre that the two were talking to each other in equally business-like tones.

"Am I required for anything else today?" Soren asked.

"You're fine for now," Greil replied, "Thank you for your time. From now on you can come in on the days we agreed to."

"Thank you for employing me," Soren nodded and turned on his heel, "Good day to you, sir, goodbye Ike,"

"Goodbye!" Ike called after him as the mage hurried down the stairs. As soon as Soren was out the front door, he turned to his father, expecting some sort of comment as soon as Soren was out of earshot. That was what had happened when Rhys had officially joined their ranks. He had had an interview, left, and then his father had told Ike and Titania what he really thought of him. He didn't disappoint this time either.

"Well, he's certainly an interesting character," his father said, walking back into his study. Ike followed, wondering what else he had to say.

"What do you think of him Ike?" They both took chairs either side of the large desk, which was currently covered in company ledgers. Obviously Soren had been shown how all the records were kept and had looked through all the books. Ike took the chair that Soren had vacated and considered his answer for a moment. He didn't really have a lot to work on to form a balanced opinion on Soren yet. He knew of his academic prowess, and the fact he had some rather practical career aims, and that he liked ham and cheese sandwiches. Apart from his first impressions about Soren's icy and disdainful ways of behaving, that was all he knew. However his father did want an answer.

"I'd like to know more about him," he concluded out loud, "Try and get to know him, perhaps try and find out why he is always alone. I don't think he wants that though. He seems quite resolute about staying on his own and I don't think he wants me around."

"I wouldn't say that," his father chuckled.

"What do you mean?" asked Ike, confused.

"I would say he doesn't want you around," his father explained, "He thinks very highly of you. He wouldn't say so whilst you were there listening, but once you had gone and I asked him again. Phrases like 'a widely-proclaimed hero' and 'a champion who defends the victimised' were some of his words exactly." Ike was even more confused now. Soren wouldn't say those kinds of things about him! Soren was all ice, disapproval and impatience. He wouldn't use such glorifying phrases, especially not about Ike, who he had heartily disapproved of ever since Ike had come and sat without invitation at Soren's table in the cafeteria.

"Surely he said them sarcastically? Or at least negatively?" he asked his father. That was the only way he could imagine Soren saying them.

"He sounded disdainful, but I believe there was no real disdain there," his father gave a sigh but then his expression grew serious.

"Ike."

"Yes?" Ike was surprised by the sudden commanding tone in his voice.

"People don't like things that they don't understand. They also shy away from things they find strange, things they find unnatural. It's not always voluntary; sometimes it's an instinct against danger."

"Is that why Soren's like he is?" Ike asked. It was the only reason why his father would tell him these things.

"Perhaps," his father replied, getting to his feet, "Now, I'm sure Oscar and the rest of the company will be waiting for us next-door. Come on, bring your sister with you." He left the study, leaving Ike sitting in the study alone.

His father hadn't given him any answer as to if his little lecture was about Soren or not, however Ike was starting to feel that was the point. It was if his father had come up with some sort of theory of his own, but he knew he would have a very good reason not to explain it. Maybe he thought that Soren was the one who should explain it himself if it was so personal. But Soren would never talk about something that personal, he wouldn't open up that much...because he found it strange and unnatural, was that what his father had meant?

There was only really one way of finding out. He was going to have to get closer to Soren whether the mage wanted it or not. He was going to befriend the mage, and he wasn't going to be put off my Soren's negativity, not in the slightest! Not only that, now Soren was working for his father he'd have plenty of opportunities to talk to him, even if Soren decided to avoid him at school. Besides, his father seemed to be encouraging them to communicate with each other so they had no excuse not to talk here!

It was decided. Tomorrow he would start fighting an up-hill battle. Tomorrow he would start his campaign to become Soren's friend.


	4. Newspapers and Journals

**AN: Thank you to Hannahbug3, Catsrae, Beta the Second, Zehava, PalindromeIsntOne, KenshintheSeventh, Azure blue espeon and Guest for reviewing!**

**I'm sorry for the long wait. First came exams and then came a copy of Fire Emblem: Blazing Sword and all in all little progress except for the fact Hector is level twenty and almost unbeatable. However I am back, I promise to update this story a lot more, and "Crystal Clarity" will be updated too! Also expect some FE7 oneshots in the near distant future!**

**So back to this strange Modern AU then… This chapter is a mixture of bonding and pre-FE9 plot with a few mentions of the mysterious Headmaster but also the first glimpses of the CLC – the Curiously Locked Cupboard in the school library, which will play a big part later in the story. **

**So please, enjoy this update! And, if you want another update, please leave me a review!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Four: Newspapers and Journals<strong>

Due to the lack of news about fatal crashes on the behalf of Oscar's police officer comrade, they were able to take the car to school the next day. This, alongside the fact that no one had slept through their alarm for a change, meant that their little group all arrived at school much earlier than they usually did. This left Ike with the rather pressing problem of what he was meant to do with the extra half an hour he had gained to spend inside the school walls. He ended up heading towards his classroom to see if anyone was around. The school was disconcertingly quiet. He actually could walk through the corridors without having anyone run into him, or have their books scattered across the carpet where they could trip unobservant passer-by.

He could even see the posters on the walls for a change. Apparently there was going to be a school play, some romantic thing apparently. Acting was never really Ike's thing, apparently he didn't have the sensitivity and external emotional range (his Literature teacher's words, not his) to become a good actor. Ike didn't really care, he didn't really enjoy the drama part of the Tellian Literature class anyway; he had never really liked pretending to be someone he wasn't. His eyes met a very brightly coloured poster than had been pasted on the door of a classroom. Apparently there was another tournament this month, a usual event, happening every month without exception but with a different class of warrior. Ike looked at it, hoping it was finally the turn of the swordsmen once more, but no, the large bold red letters proclaimed:

"**RELEASE YOUR INNER MAGE!"**

Wondering if that was meant to be a pun of some kind, Ike let the poster be, slightly disappointed, though glad there would be something interesting to watch soon. These tournaments often happened at lunchtime so it was always a nice change of pace to take your lunch outside and have a picnic as you watched people batter each other unconscious. Ike decided he should try searching for someone to talk to. That seemed far more interesting than reading random posters. He strode towards his classroom, knowing he was far too early for the majority of the class to have arrived yet. However he was pleasantly surprised by what he found when he entered. Ranulf was sitting in his usual seat at the back of the classroom, and for some reason, he was reading a newspaper.

"Hey," Ike greeted, taking his usual seat next to the Gallian. Ranulf gave him a general noise of acknowledgement before going back to his paper. Ike glanced at the front and saw that it was the Crimean Standard he was reading, which was a little strange. Didn't Ranulf live in Gallia? Wouldn't he be more interested in reading a Gallian newspaper? Ike scanned the front page out of the corner of his eye. Apparently King Ramon had made the unpopular decision of raising taxes for the noble classes of Crimea and several Lords and Ladies were in uproar. Also there had been a fire at a tavern in the centre of Melior which had destroyed some piece of artwork and…apparently the newspaper was letting you win a holiday to South Begnion. These articles still didn't explain why Ranulf was reading the newspaper however, for he wasn't reading the front page, he was staring very intently at a page from the middle. His eyes weren't even moving, was he even reading?

"What's the matter?" asked Ike, realising the only way to find out what was bothering his friend was to ask.

Ranulf put down the newspaper with a sigh.

"Nothing in there about it, but why would there be?" he grumbled, turning to Ike, "Trouble at home, serious trouble. A whole patrol went missing again."

"What?" Ike asked, as Ranulf glanced round the classroom carefully, they were alone.

"A Gallian patrol, assembled by the King of Gallia himself. King Ramon allows one patrol at a time to go round Crimea; it's a step towards improving laguz-beorc relations apparently. However recently the patrols have been vanishing, expert cats in every one, specially trained to live as beorc! We received our last message from the current patrol five days ago from near the Crimea-Daein border. No word from them since. They should have sent another message two days ago. Nothing."

"What do you think happened to them?" Ike asked.

"No idea," said Ranulf, lowering his voice as a group of half a dozen of their fellow students entered the room, "But one of my cousins was part of that patrol. She's one of the best with beorc technology in the country…I shudder to think what an enemy would want with her!" He gave another long sigh.

"But there's nothing we can…" He stopped talking abruptly and suddenly sat bolt upright in his chair. More of their classmates had arrived, but no one that they usually talked to. Ike looked about for the cause of Ranulf's sudden silence, was unable to find it, and then stared back at his friend, whose tail was now swishing in great agitation.

"What's wrong?"

"Can't you smell that?" Ranulf hissed under his breath, "It smells like…ugh…something like cheap lemon shampoo mixed with…with…_filth_. Like there's one of _those_ in the room!"

"One of what?" Ike asked, very confused now.

"Never mind," Ranulf replied swiftly, "I forgot myself. It's nothing. Ignore it, you're supposed to."

This only made Ike even more perplexed, however it didn't take him long to find something to cover his confusion. Sitting in the darkest most shadowy corner of the classroom was very recognisable figure looking irritably at his desk. Ike immediately got to his feet and crossed the room as Ranulf went back to staring at his newspaper.

"Hey Soren!"

The mage could only have just arrived; he certainly hadn't been there last time Ike looked round the classroom. What was even more intriguing was that Ike didn't think he'd seen Soren in this classroom ever. What was he doing here?

"Hello," Soren replied curtly, reaching for his bag and pulling out a book, "Just because I now work for your father, it doesn't mean we are now… companions." He did seem to have grown slightly less irritated though, which didn't match his words at all. Surely he'd be more irritated if Ike had just imposed on his morning?

"Why are you here?" Ike asked, displaying his usual blunt way of getting to the point without any consideration to his wording. Soren seemed to contemplate him for a moment before opening his book with an air of slight annoyance.

"If I was in a bad temper with you in particular, I would have replied to that question with a witty remark about philosophy and existence, however, be grateful I am not," was his eventual reply, "I am here because this is the room occupied by the class I am part of."

"I've never seen you in this room before!" Ike exclaimed, rather loudly, for the group of girls who were talking nearby turned to glance at him before returning to their conversation.

"That is because I usually tell the school receptionist to mark me in on the register before they are handed to teachers. Then I will go and do whatever work I choose before lessons. However, the receptionist has provided yet another example of her incompetence today and was not present at her post. Therefore I am here to be registered with everyone else." He made it sound like he had been greatly inconvenienced by this, and it was clear now the fact he had had to go to his classroom like everyone else was what had been irritating him so much before Ike had come over.

"It's not that bad in here," said Ike, glancing about, wondering what Soren could be interested in,"You get to hear all sorts of strange things. Information about what people are up to, that sort of thing"

"So the classroom contains a spy network," said Soren, "I'm sure it will hardly contain anything I do not know already. Tell me what you have learned from this classroom."

Ike immediately thought back on the inane bits of chatter he had heard on a daily basis, sure something would impress Soren into sticking around on a regular basis. If Soren was always in the classroom before school, it was more likely that they would be able to spend time together, and that meant it was more likely they would be friends! Now…he had to think of something good amidst the talk about haircuts, tattoos, and who was going out with whom.

"Well…apparently, the woman who's been picking Elincia up from school recently on her motorbike is actually the sister of the Head of Police, General Delbray, so Elincia might know him."

"Yes, the motorcyclist is Lady Lucia Delbray, Head of Crimea's Secret Service," Soren drawled, "Which makes Elincia a very dubious figure indeed. Who would have a secret service chief for company every day? A noble no doubt, despite how much Elincia tries to deny otherwise. She knows an awful lot about Crimea's noble houses in History lessons."

"I always thought she was a Lady…" Ike said, "She had a birthday party in a really fancy restaurant when we were lower down the school. It was like another world but she was used to it. The food was great, there was steak even on the children's menu..."

"Well we have come to the conclusion that this classroom knows nothing I don't," Soren said, with an air of finality, cutting off any further musing on Ike's part.

"Well, it doesn't hurt to talk," Ike said dully, he got the impression that it would take a lot of practice to ever win a discussion with Soren. Well, he was the persevering sort; he wasn't going to give up quite yet.

"Would you like have to have lunch together later?"

Soren eyed him suspiciously, as if Ike was trying to extract his deepest darkest secrets with his simple questions.

"If I say yes, will you leave me be?" he replied.

"Yes," said Ike, brightening, that counted as a victory right? They were going to have lunch together!

"Even if I do say yes, I do not necessarily keep promises," Soren said coldly, "But yes. Now leave me be." Ike nodded and hurried back to his own desk. He'd count Soren's answer as a maybe then. Either way, it was better than a flat out no!

* * *

><p>It was hardly unusual for Ike to be the first into the cafeteria when the lunch bell rang. It had been said, by Ranulf mostly, that if Ike used the same speed he used to dash to the lunch queue in his sword play then he'd even be able to defeat even the teachers with ease. Of course he never beat Ilyana in there. The petite mage seemed to be able to warp herself to the area with the greatest concentration of edible matter, but still Ike couldn't imagine there was much gap between their arrivals. He was pretty fast where food was concerned. However he had a new reason to want to get to get to lunch quickly today. Lunch of course meant his meeting with Soren, but would the surly mage even show up? Ike bought his lunch and sat down at the very furthest table, where he had seen Soren yesterday for the first time. He sat there, watching the door, and waited.<p>

And continued to wait.

After ten minutes he started to get curious as to Soren's whereabouts. After twenty, he was getting impatient and had started on his lunch. By half an hour's wait, he'd finished his lunch but still decided that if Soren was going to eat, they could still technically have lunch together. By the time there was only twenty minutes left of lunch break, Ike concluded that if Soren wasn't going to come to him, he was going to come to Soren. There had been no trace of the mage whatsoever and that meant, not only had he broken his promise, but also he hadn't had any lunch. That simply wouldn't do.

If Ike was ever in charge of anywhere official he would make skipping meals illegal. You simply couldn't concentrate through an afternoon's worth of lessons if you hadn't filled up at lunch time! Ike remembered with horror the occasion when he had spent the entire lunch time in the library, trying and failing to assist his little sister with her Maths homework. He'd missed lunch and his stomach had growled in complaint at him all afternoon. It was so loud that even his swordsmanship teacher at the time had winced every time Ike cringed mid-swordplay. It was also the only afternoon Mia had ever beaten him in a practice duel and she was still quick to remind him of it at every opportunity! No. He was not letting Soren go hungry through the entire afternoon. He was going to buy him lunch and then track him down. They were going to have lunch together, whether Soren wanted it or not!

He joined the queue once more and bought Soren his lunch before leaving the cafeteria for his mage hunt. As he walked down busy corridors he thought hard about where Soren might be based on what Ike knew of him so far. Soren did a lot of work. So perhaps he was on a computer somewhere? No, he did secretary work too. So in the school office then? Soren was very clever and got astonishingly good grades which could only mean he studied a lot. So what about the library? The library was definitely the closest so Ike resolved to check there first before trying the other locations. He knew he must look very odd as he strode quickly down the corridors, and up a flight of stairs. He had his battered satchel hoisted over one shoulder, where it swung dangerous and repeated thumped him in the knees as he walked quickly so not to waste the lunch break. In the opposite hand to his bag arm he juggled a pack of sandwiches (cheese and ham of course) a packet of crisps and he had wedged a bottle of water under his arm. (He was going to remove it from its position before he got to the library, armpit-warmed water didn't sound very appetising.)

* * *

><p>He got to the library with fifteen minutes left of lunch break to spare. He opened the door to find the large room packed to the brim with students, which he found very odd. Usually everyone would be out enjoying the sunshine, or playing sports, or milling about in the canteen. What were they doing studying in their break? He looked about and started to notice a trend. There was a bit of a fad going on at the moment, a fashion craze, may be a better word for it. This craze had emerged amongst the magic-using population of the school, which had helped Ike identify them now. Using magic seemed to involve dancing a lot, Ike had noticed, especially when it came to swirling in circles. The latest fashion trend for mages had therefore become long floaty skirts, long loose coats, long hair, anything that swirled nicely when you spun in circles. The library was crammed with magic users. This was looking hopeful for Ike; Soren was a magic user too. Maybe there was a magic study club going on or something.<p>

He victoriously spotted the mage in question at the back of the library next to a plain white door with a bizarre number of brazen locks on it. Soren sat at a desk laden with books and a towering stack of newspapers. Soren was reading one of these newspapers, the Mainal Post to be exact, and seemed quite intent in his reading material. So intent Ike suddenly had the idea that he could sneak up on the mage and surprise him. It was silly he knew, but at least it would pay Soren back for making him wait forty minutes in the cafeteria. So, as stealthily as he could, he slipped through tables and bookshelves, hushing any of the magic users who tried to greet him, and made his way, as quietly as possible towards Soren, who still had his back to him. When Ike was right behind him, he suddenly had the idea to prod Soren in the back to see what happened. Silly again, but he'd like to see what Soren was like when surprised and not curt and composed. Just as he reached for Soren's shoulder, the mage whipped round.

"Touch me and I shall inflict pain on you like you've never felt before… with only this pencil." He showed Ike a yellow colouring pencil. Ike stared at it, then at Soren, and back to the pencil. The pencil was quite sharp, though not as sharp as Soren's piercing glare. He'd better make a peace offering.

"I bought you lunch," he said, offering the food items he'd carried through the school, "You didn't show up, so I thought I'd come to you."

"Believe it or not I had full intention of coming to see you," Soren said as Ike fetched himself a chair and sat at the desk next to Soren, placing the food in the front of him, "However I was detained."

"By what?" Ike asked curiously. So Soren had wanted to come?

"The Headmaster," said Soren, "He has returned for a brief while and I had some suggestions for him. He had some matters to discuss with me as well. By the time we had finished our conversation I knew I must come to the library otherwise I would not be able to make significant progress with the Begnion papers. The Headmaster has them delivered whenever he visits the school, and always leaves them in the library afterwards. If I do not get to them swiftly they are used for magic practice. More recently of late because of this…" He reached into his bag and pulled out a roll of paper before smoothing it out on the desk before him. It was a poster, the same poster that Ike had seen earlier.

"There's going to be a tournament for mages," Ike replied, before suddenly coming to a realisation, "That's why there's so many magic-users studying right now."

"Exactly," Soren replied. Ike pushed the food towards him and Soren simply stared at it.

"Are you entering?" Ike asked. Soren gave a huff, seemingly of amusement at his suggestion. Ike noted this as the closest thing to laughter he had heard from Soren.

"Why would I need to?" Soren huffed, "I have the best grades of all the magic users in the school; I have no need to prove myself. The tournament is simply a waste of better spent lunch hours."

Ike wasn't quite sure he was telling the truth however. His eyes kept glancing back at the poster on the table and as Ike followed his gaze he noticed something was amiss with Soren's poster. At the bottom of the bold poster was written "AN ACTION-PACKED EVENT WHERE GRADES DON'T MATTER!" The 'grades don't matter' part had been coloured in neon orange, whilst the rest of the sentence was on a white background, as if the end of sentence had been highlighted. In fact, it seemed to have been, he didn't remember anything neon orange about the poster he had seen this morning.

"Where did you get this?" Ike asked.

"It was left on my desk, for me," Soren replied, there was a knowing glint in his eye, there was definitely something more to this but Soren wasn't giving away any secrets.

"Is someone challenging you?" Ike asked, it was the only reason why a mention of grades not mattering would be highlighted; someone must hate the fact Soren had better grades than them and therefore wanted him to enter this tournament.

"Correct," Soren reached for the sandwich Ike brought for him, and at last had something to eat.

"So you have signed up for the tournament," Ike said, glad that Soren was eating something.

"What makes you say that?" Soren asked, eyeing him over his sandwich, which he was clutching hold of in a bizarrely tight grip as if someone was going to come along and suddenly rip it from his grasp.

"Well you're fairly confident in what you can do," Ike explained, "You seem to like being the best, this challenge is a good chance to show everyone you are the best, and stop the challenger thinking they are."

"Almost," Soren replied, his gaze had become less severe, Ike found himself wondering whether that meant something.

"I have signed up to the competition," Soren said, drawing the crisps towards him as if those were going to be suddenly stolen like he thought his sandwiches would be, "But for other reasons. Yes, to show the challenger who is the most capable amongst us. She will learn that soon. However my other reasons are far more pressing."

Ike was about to ask what those other reasons were when Soren answered him before he could get the question out.

"You have not gained the right level of trust for me to share that with you," Soren said, his gaze was still softer however, even if his tone was curt once more.

"What level of trust am I at?" Ike asked, leaning against the curiously locked door to his left.

"The level where I will have meals with you and consider giving you mathematics coaching in thanks for this lunch," Soren replied, taking Ike by surprise at the mention of coaching. How did Soren know that maths was his worst subject? Still, he should be grateful. Today had to be counted as a success, he had not only had lunch with Soren, but Soren was offering to spend more time with him. This was looking up!

"Come to this desk tomorrow and we will begin," Soren said briskly, picking up his newspaper once more, "I do this only as a repayment for this lunch, nothing more." His gaze returned to its previous severity, his tone was icy once more. It was if he had suddenly realised he had become too friendly and snapped back to attention. He had even shifted a little further away from Ike in the act of straightening his chair. He fixed his line of vision directly onto the paper he was reading with such an air of finality that Ike felt his next interruption was necessary otherwise Soren would never emerge from the pages ever again.

"Anything interesting in there?"

Soren closed the newspaper with a rustle of irritation. The end of their conversation hadn't gone exactly as he'd planned.

"It's what isn't in there that interests me," he said snappily, "These are Begnion papers and not one has had a story on border skirmishes for at least a fortnight now. Daein is usually snapping at the boundaries but they must have simply stopped. If I was in Begnion I would be alarmed. When an army is not at war, they are preparing for war, basics at work. Daein has stopped fighting to obviously prepare for another fight. And if it takes a fortnight at least, they are preparing something larger than usual."

"Is that what you discussed with the Headmaster?" Ike inquired. He knew the Headmaster held a significant position in Begnion, though he didn't know what title. He had never actually met the man, but apparently he looked impressive as well as acted it.

"No," Soren replied curtly, "I talked about other matters, school matters. Now would you please…" He was interrupted by the bell that signified the end of lunch time and promptly jumped to his feet.

"I must avoid going to registration," was the mage's only explanation before dashing out the door with a curt, "Goodbye Ike,"

Ike, remembering he had to go to registration too, got to his feet and allowed himself to be swept out library with the tide of mages. However they didn't manage to sweep him out quickly enough for him to miss the fact that Soren had taken the water, crisps, and his remaining sandwich with him when he had dashed from the room. Well it seemed he had succeeded in making sure Soren had something to eat, if only one sandwich so far. Hopefully Soren was going to eat the rest in class, or after school, one sandwich certainly did not make a meal.

Then again, he had definitely made progress today and it was only the afternoon. Soren said he would tutor him, though it was a little befuddling as to how he knew his mathematic results were the lowest. However Soren had been the one to suggest the tutoring which meant he actually wanted to be in Ike's presence! Ike wouldn't have to search the school for him the next time they met. Add this bonus to the fact Soren now worked for his father, they would be seeing each other quite often. Ike felt like he had accomplished something today, he had definitely done what his instincts had told him to. He had gone and visited the boy with the red eyes again.

Why was that phrase so stuck in his head? Soren clearly was his age and he definitely wasn't a boy. However this phrase was something that repeated itself like a mantra. It was bizarre, like a tiny nagging voice, not the one that told you to not to do stupid things, a different one that seemed hazy and vague, like a forgotten dream. He had no clue what it was, but it seem to approve of what he was doing. He wanted to be friends with Soren, although the intelligent mage was nothing but a challenge. Soren seemed alone and isolated and that couldn't be healthy for anyone. His behaviour was bizarre. He defied the school system with an almost uncanny sense of power but through that, he only made himself even more isolated. Soren needed a friend, that was Ike's conclusion, and he, Ike, was going to be that friend. He was going to make the 'boy with the red eyes' open up a little, even if it took mathematics and nagging to do so.

"Where have you been?" Ranulf demanded of him when he returned to the classroom to be marked present.

"I think I've been helping someone," Ike replied, taking his usual seat.

"You think?" Ranulf replied, "So it's not the usual anti-bullying march, or helping Pelleas out of a cupboard?"

"No," Ike said, as their teacher arrived, "It's something a bit different." He glanced over to the deserted seat in the furthest corner of the room.

"Or very different," he concluded. Ranulf raised an eyebrow at him, but let the silence hang. Once Ike was determined about something, he'd persevere until the end, all his friends knew that. Ranulf had seen him battle bullies, climb on roofs to rescue fallen Pegasus riders, even endure a posh birthday party that was a whole social ladder above what he was used to, just to help out friends in need. If Ike had a new project, Ranulf certainly wasn't going to get in his way.

Well, that was what he believed there and then.


	5. Hobbies and Crafts

**AN: Thank you to STKB, Pretty-Devil-In-Prada, and itachisbestfriend664 for reviewing! Comments are always appreciated and taken into account!**

**I'm happy to say that this chapter contains the answer to a mystery that quite a few people who reviewed the first chapter picked up on. Why was there blood on the automatic doors to the library, if Greil had his medallion-induced killing ramage at the other end of the road? Well this chapter gives the answer to that, and it's not a pleasant one! If you can't remember that incident I suggest going and rereading the first chapter, it'll make this chapter make more sense! On a brighter note, there are also some new characters this chapter with more to come in the next!**

**Please enjoy, and please leave me a review!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five: Hobbies and Crafts<strong>

When Ike had returned home from school the previous day he had expected Soren to be there. He didn't know how often Soren would be a presence in his home due to his new job. However somehow he had expected to find Soren on the door step shortly after he had arrived, just like the day he had come for an interview. He was disappointed though. He had a thoroughly Soren-free evening and when he asked his father over dinner where the mage was, he was told Soren only worked four days a week, today not being one of those days. After dinner, when Mist and Rolf had been ushered into Oscar's gleaming kitchen to do the washing up, Shinon and Gatrie had departed on a walk for 'fresh air' and Titania had gone to repaint her car, Ike's father gestured him outside and asked why he was wondering about Soren's absence. Ike explained, but also went onto describe everything that had happened at school that day. Afterwards his father seemed strangely amused, though impressed.

"You're getting there," he chuckled, "Keep on at it Ike. You're doing the right thing." He then strode out of the dining room, leaving Ike rather confused.

What was he getting to? Friendship with Soren perhaps but why did his father find that so amusing? Well at least his father approved of what he was doing. Perhaps he'd even encourage him and Soren to work together more. That would certainly help him on his friendship mission! However the biggest breakthrough so far was definitely the invitation Soren had made him. He said the tutoring was only payment for the lunch, but Ike wouldn't let that be the end of it. If in doubt he'd buy Soren more lunches if it meant more conversations, and perhaps tutoring sessions, just between the two of them.

He trawled through his homework that night fairly hopeful about tomorrow's prospects. His positive attitude wasn't even dampened by the fact his father, Titania and Oscar wordlessly vanished off in Titania's car shortly before he went to bed. Usually he was very curious about whatever work his father seemed to be doing, which was often at odd hour. His mind was too preoccupied with thoughts of his new goal to wonder why they were carefully passing axes and lances through the boot of Titania's four by four. Perhaps it was the sight of the piling of weaponry that gave him the strange dream he had that night though. It was a hazy vision of hurrying through a packed street towards the sound of gunfire, all the while feeling as if he'd forgotten something. It was so bizarre that Ike gave it no mind, passing it off as nonsense.

* * *

><p>There was an air of great expectation hanging around the school when Ike arrived the next day. After guiding Sothe none-too-gently away from the door to a cleaners' closet, and helping the spirit charmer trapped in there out of the darkness, he asked both of them what all the excitement was about.<p>

"It's the first day of the mage tourney," Pelleas explained eagerly, he was gripping a pile of spell books under one arm and in his hands he held a great roll of paper, "It's the qualifiers today, we don't know what the challenge is yet, but if we pass, we can be in the main tournament!"

"You're entering?" Ike inquired of the famously-picked upon mage. Pelleas nodded enthusiastically.

"I've been practicing ever since the competition was announced," he put his spell books down as he spoke and then made to unfurl his huge roll of paper, "I'm determined to do my very best, but if I don't get through, I can always support Micaiah from the sidelines!" He unveiled a large banner made from plain paper and a lot of silver and yellow paint. In large capital letters it proclaimed **GO MICAIAH!** and then in smaller capitals: **(AND TORMOD AND ILYANA TOO!) **Ike regarded the banner with interest but it didn't seem any different to the dozens of other tournament banners he'd seen. It was a school tradition alongside the tournaments that everyone would get behind a competitor of their choosing and create banners, t-shirts and the like to proclaim their support. Ike could imagine all the Dawn Brigade would get behind Micaiah, though it was true that Pelleas, Ilyana and Tormod often joined them so there may be conflicting views in the group on who they should back. Pelleas seemed to have gone for the sensible option, even though he was actually competing himself. He had backed all his friends though his bias towards Micaiah was very evident. That was probably what had landed him in the cupboard.

A bell rang from the depths of the school building and Pelleas hastily scooped up his books.

"Registration is in five minutes!" he exclaimed urgently, before hurrying off down the corridor, most likely towards his classroom. Ike was left by the closet with Sothe who finally spoke.

"I used to think you were cool," the rogue said sullenly, pushing his hands further into his trouser pockets.

"I haven't changed," Ike replied, raising an eyebrow at him, "I've always stood up to those who've been unfairly picking on people. You're not an exception. Just because you don't like him that much, doesn't mean you have to lock him up all the time."

"He hangs around Micaiah too much," Sothe grumbled, "Like an adoring puppy, you should see him sometimes!"

"Well maybe he wouldn't if more people were nice to him," Ike said simply, before turning and striding off in the same direction as Pelleas, off towards his own classroom where he wouldn't have to consider the warring students of the year below. Instead he was greeted by a much perkier Ranulf, who seemed to either have had some good news, or was masking his worry from yesterday. When Ike inquired he said nothing about it and merely pointed out that Ike was later at arriving than usua,l prompting Ike to explain the cupboard incident to Ranulf's usual sniggering.

Throughout that morning Ranulf was a little confused as to how Ike kept a positive attitude all the way until lunchtime. Ike even managed to concentrate through a Geography lesson without having to look out the window to entertain himself, and shockingly he even half-smiled his way through mathematics! Ranulf had no idea how he was doing it, or why he was inclined to be happy through the subjects he knew Ike found the dullest, or in the case of mathematics, the most challenging. It made no sense that Ike was happy in Maths, Ike hated Maths! He got the basics but Ranulf was forever trying to explain the more complex things to him and Ike simply did not get it. They weren't even doing anything easy in their lessons today! There wasn't anything good for lunch! There wasn't even an extra club or activity to look forward to today! Was Ike on the cat-nip? He was far too happy!

"Ike, seriously," was Ranulf's exclamation as they left mathematics for lunch, "What has happened? You'd think you'd solved world hunger by the way you've been acting today." A slight over-exaggeration perhaps, but still, he was far too happy.

"What?" Ike replied, clearly missing the point of Ranulf's inquiry.

"You're far too happy," Ranulf explained, "You'd think something great was about to happen. What's going on?"

"Nothing," Ike said, "Is it strange to be happy?"

"For you, in Maths, yes," was Ranulf's blunt reply, "What gives?"

"No one has given me anything," Ike replied, "I was just thinking that tutoring later will make Maths seem better, isn't that a reason to be pleased?"

Ranulf's eyebrows disappeared into his headwear as he stopped in his tracks, making a very disgruntled mage-student drop their books all over the floor as they promptly walked into the cat who had come to a halt right in the middle of a moving crowd.

"Ike!"

"What?"

"Come on," Ranulf groaned, "Tutoring? You're going to be mocked to high heaven for being tutored! I mean, I know you're one of the most liked beorc in the school but still, you're not going to end up with a lot of supporters next tourney if you're tutored!"

"I don't care," Ike said, "Neither does Soren as he offered to tutor me." He looked quizzically at Ranulf as the Gallian started walking again, but he seemed rather disgruntled at Ike's previous insistence. Ike saw no reason for him to be so. Ranulf knew he didn't care what others thought of him. Ike had never tried to be anyone but himself no matter how popular or recognisable he became. His anti-bullying actions had gained him quite a bit of fame from time to time, not that he really needed to be recognised for his work. He would do it either way; the fame didn't matter at all to him. Surely Ranulf understood his impartiality to popularity by now? They had known each other for years! Ever since they started this school!

"Soren is tutoring you?" Ranulf question, his tone was an unhappy mixture of caution and disapproval, "As in the anti-social genius who everyone calls the school's resident demon because they think he lives here and never leaves?"

"He's not a demon," Ike said defensively, "He's not anti-social either he's just a bit…different and... well he talks to me! Also he definitely leaves this place; he works for my father after school, helping with finances or something like that."

"Whatever you say," Ranulf said, still sounding disapproving, "I've heard nothing but bad things about him. Lyre says he smells _different,_ if you get what I mean. She sits near him in one or two subjects, and if even Lyre can smell it, then he must be ignored at all costs."

"Well if Lyre has a problem with whatever deodorant he wears, I'll sit near him instead," Ike replied matter of factly. Ranulf merely shook his head; Ike did not get what he meant at all.

"Well, see you later," Ike continued, "I've got to eat lunch quickly; I have to meet Soren in the library soon."

"Go be tutored then," Ranulf said dully, before turning on his heel and striding quite purposefully in the opposite direction, away from the school cafeteria. Ike ignored his friend's sudden determination and headed off to get himself something to eat before he had to join Soren in the library.

Despite how fast Ike wolfed his food down, he was the one waiting for Soren again. The difference this time however was that when he arrived in the surprisingly empty library he found a note waiting for him on the desk Soren had occupied yesterday.

_**To Ike. I am currently qualifying for the mage tourney. If I am not present when you arrive it is because either the event has had complications or more of the school population has turned up than usual, causing queues. I expect the experience to be tedious and to be of little difficulty however you have my written word to return to this desk as soon as possible. In the mean time, please find a menial task that keeps you sufficiently entertained. Soren.**_

Ike sat down on the seat he had taken yesterday which still stood beside Soren's desk. He felt safe calling it Soren's desk for it seemed the surface had not been touched since Soren had vacated it yesterday. Everything was exactly how they had left it right down to the stack of newspapers which were in same order as Soren had been reading them. Had no one else wanted to read the news? Ike idly looked about the library which was its usual maze of packed shelves and brightly coloured plastic seating. There were a few bundles of notes or stray textbooks left lying around, and a copy of the Weekly Wanderer, a travel magazine that was presenting a dark headline about desert holiday packages being recalled due to rumours of feral laguz roaming Begnion's hottest climes, lay on the floor a short way from Soren's desk.

The only thing in the room that looked like it didn't belong there was the door beside Ike. It was a plain white door devoid of posters which had an intriguing number of locks on it. Six in total, three key holes, and three electronic devices only one of which Ike recognised as unlocked by some sort of key-card, the other two were a puzzle to him. With so many thieves and rogues in the school, having tight security was a must if the school was trying to keep something hidden away. However the six locks did seem remarkably excessive.

"You're already here, good."

Ike turned and saw Soren striding towards him. He looked incredibly wind-swept and the smell of magic, a scent not unlike that of burning, filled the entire library as he entered.

"You qualified?" Ike asked as Soren took his regular position at his desk. He put his bag on the table and took out a couple of text books, a clear plastic pencil case, and what looked like a large chunky black calculator.

"Yes," Soren replied curtly. However he didn't seem glad, in fact he was frowning slightly, he was clearly irritated about something, "Now, mathematics. Hand me your exercise book." Ike did as he was told and picked his book from his bag before handing it to the expectant mage beside him. As he did so he couldn't help but notice again that Soren was wearing one white fingerless glove. He could see it better now. It wasn't particularly remarkable, it was plain white fabric covering from Soren's wrist to his knuckles. The only unusual thing about it was the fact Soren was only wearing one. Did only one of his hands get cold? Thinking about it, Soren had worn that glove, and only that one glove, every time Ike had seen him. Sure Soren was an unusual person, but…there had to be a reason behind this particular quirk.

In fact he found that glove rather distracting as Soren began to flick through his exercise book. He frequently glanced from it to Soren's expression which was still rather irritable however Ike was fairly sure it was the pre-existing annoyance, not a dislike of his poor work. He waited for Soren's reaction all the while glancing between his face and his single glove. When Soren closed the book he waited with baited breath for his verdict.

"We will start with Trigonometry," Soren finally announced, picking up a wad of squared paper from his bag and laying it on the table.

"So I'm not a completely lost cause?" Ike asked with an earnest smile. The edges of Soren's mouth twitched, was that…something almost like a smile?

"I have seen much worse," He replied, though with less of his usual curtness, "So we will start with trigonometry, using examples." He chose his stationary and began to draw on the lined paper before him.

"Now, this is the first problem we shall work through," Soren announced, "Imagine for a moment that you have a particularly idiotic companion who has thrown his hand axe onto the roof,"

"Boyd's done that," Ike said, nodding whilst leaning in to look at Soren's diagram, "That's a good picture of an axe,"

"Thank you," Soren said quickly, as if keen to get back on subject, "Now because you're worried about someone stealing the axe, you get someone else to fetch you a ladder to get it down. However this person doesn't know how long a ladder to get. Using trigonometry we will work out how long the ladder will need to be." He finished his diagram where a triangle now existed, one side being the wall with the hand-axe on top, another being the ground, and the third being a neatly drawn ladder.

"You know the wall is eight metres tall, and the most suitable place to put the ladder is six metres from the wall. How do we work out how long the ladder must be?"

"Is that when we label things?" Ike asked, trying to remember what he had learnt in class. Soren nodded in response.

"So what do you label?"

Their tutoring session, which was more like a lesson than a help session Ike came to think, proceeded in a similar fashion. Soren would not give him any answers and merely asked him question after question until Ike finally understood what was going on. When he had failed to get the right answer three times in a row Soren would then give him a lecture, going through each calculation step by step, swatting Ike's hands away when he tried to touch his nice neat diagrams. He was a very good teacher, though a strict one, and like any lesson the session had its fair share of questions, scoldings, but also distractions. As Soren drew his next diagram Ike's eyes wasbe rooted on his white glove.

"You know the lance is two metres long and the door is three metres tall so how far away must you… _For Ashera's sake,_ _what is so interesting about my hand?_" Ike jumped as he was suddenly reprimanded again.

"You're only wearing one glove," he answered immediately, used to having responses demanded of him at once. Therefore his reply was just as prompt as when Soren was trying to get numbers from him.

Soren stared at his own right hand then back at Ike who had followed his gaze. The mage sighed and ran said gloved hand through his hair, depositing his pencil behind his ear. He looked like he was having an inward battle with himself, the irritation from before their tutoring session creeping back into his expression. It had been suitably blank and studious when he had been acting as the teacher. He opened his mouth and Ike thought he was about to shout at him. However the mage's exclamation came out as something entirely unexpected.

"This tournament is a shoddy excuse of a talent based event! I can't abide it!"

"What?" Ike asked, was this what had been irritating Soren all this time? "What's wrong with the tournament?"

"It is too frivolous," Soren retorted sharply, "It is too much like a popularity contest. It is too _social…_" If Soren had been anyone else Ike could have imagined him spitting out that last worked. However this was Soren and the final word was punctuated by a piercing red glare to the nearest wall, which had a tournament poster on it.

"The true study of magic is not a social event," Soren continued, "It takes serious study, and sometimes, extensive pain. A swordsman need not know the history of his blade from the very iron ore used in its creation but a mage must know every elemental spirit they wish to invoke the power of or they cannot safely control the elements to which they have been entrusted. This tournament should involve a written exam at the very least, a test of runes, of history, of the divine and the forbidden, every element of magic, not just the ability to destroy things and make entertaining patterns. There's an aesthetics round, aesthetics!"

"That seems a bit off," Ike said, not know anything about magic, but it sure sounded complicated. Also having an aesthetics round seemed wrong. Magic was for fighting, not making pretty sparkles, those were no use in battle. Surely they shouldn't be challenging that, the other classes of warriors had never had an aesthetics round in their tournaments.

"What is also a 'bit off'," Soren continued in his rather icy rant, "Is the fact they have made it into a popularity contest by allowing even more audience ridiculousness. It seems everyone must have a poor pun on a stick to wave about at whom they deem the 'worthiest' also known as the most popular. No concern for ability at all, they're treating the event like a once a week social gathering. The Micaites all come out in full force: banners, t-shirts, sweaters, face masks, even selling them! Then they have picnics and barbeques. It is a celebration of excess, not magic. A tournament where popularity and availability of food and wealth is celebrated instead of the studies that should take place in a school."

"They must have really gone to town this month," Ike commented. It was true, the celebrations for each tournament had been mounting, and maybe they had finally reached their peak. He had no idea what 'Micaites' were, but Soren did often use complicated words so he probably excused from not understand this one just this once. Soren did have a point though. All the tournaments were more about the picnics and fun for spectators than the studious academic achievement of becoming the best warrior in your field. Studying did seem to matter a lot in magic, mages always had so many books with them, so the lack of focus on academic achievement must have been really emphasised. Also there had always been an element of popularity to the proceedings, Ike had to admit he had never met half his supporters in the swordsmen's tourney, but still they had banners and t-shirts exclaiming they liked him. Did Soren have any supporters?

"Were there people cheering for you?" he asked Soren, after it seemed the mage had taken a breather from his ranting which seemed to have brought the tirade to an end.

"Of course not, not a single supporter. My applause was pure patronising politeness,"

"That's a shame," Ike said sympathetically, "I'll come and support you in the next round!"

"I do not require a popularity boost. You would draw far too much attention," Soren replied, though his expression was not too severe. If Ike was not mistaken the glimmer in those scarlet eyes of his was none other than discomfort…or uncertainty. Was something wrong? Why was he uncertain?

"Let us go back to our discussion prior to your unexpected patience towards my tirade," Soren said this all very quickly which caused Ike to blink in surprise. Why was he trying to change the topic? Well, he might as well take advantage of this strangely…flustered…Soren. This could be an opportunity to catch him off guard.

"I asked why you only wear one glove, " he reminded the mage, "It looks a little odd."

"I care not for aesthetics," Soren replied swiftly, unfortunately for Ike he seemed to be gaining composure, "Odd does not trouble me."

"It just seems a little unnecessary unless you're making some sort of statement," Ike said, "Like the time Mist came to school every day for a fortnight in wellington boots. She was trying to start a trend."

"I assure you I am not starting a trend," Soren said, curt once more, "It is purely practical."

"I wouldn't expect anything else but the sensible from you, that's why I thought it was strange."

Soren went quiet and stared at Ike very intently. It seemed as if he was judging him, that those red eyes were actually the blinking beams of some sort of X-ray machine. Ike felt like he was being inspected from the inside out. There was silence between them, only punctuated by the occasional person arriving through the library doors behind them, most of which were happy mages who wanted to study for the tourney's next round. Ike pulled his thoughts past the discomfort and met Soren's gaze with his own and smiled to try to show he didn't mean any harm to Soren. He wasn't sure that was what Soren was judging in him but that intent stare was definitely after something.

Soren sighed, reaching his right hand with his left and tugged his glove off.

"What happened?" exclaimed Ike, in shock as Soren presented his hand to him.

Ike's first thought was that Soren's hand looked utterly disgusting. Both his palm and the back of hand looked as though they had been mangled beyond recognition. The skin had grown over twisted and knotted tendons and had turned a whole myriad of vile colours from a dark painful-looking red-purple to sickly greenish-yellows. Scarring covered his entire hand up to the knuckles, which in themselves looked like someone had attempted to shred them with a blade. So full of uneven criss-crossing ridges were they that even if they were only damaged part, Soren's hands would seem deformed and ruined. His hand simply didn't look like a human appendage, it looked like the knotted roots of gnarled tree that had sudden been covered in flesh and an imitation of skin. Soren's wrist showed an array of bright veins that stood out far too much to be wholly natural. The sight made Ike cringe, hopefully not visibly though. The question remained. What on Tellius had happened to Soren's hand?

"It was shut in an automatic door when I was a child," Soren said, putting his glove back on, "Of course such doors usually open when they sense a presence nearby but this one was deliberately overridden and closed on me. The state is due to the fact the heavy doors were repeatedly slammed on me, and I tried to pull my hand free when it was trapped. There was heavy damage, a great deal of blood, it hurt terribly, and no one has ever treated it apart from myself. That is why it remains in such a state." He flexed his fingers without a wince or cringe.

"I made these gloves myself from fabric used as washable bandages, I have two in total. When I have more material I will make myself a third for convenience, though it is not a past-time that I am fond of."

He was speaking of it as if it was as completely normal as…falling over and grazing your knee! He made it sound like he had simply hit his head on the car ceiling or stumbled down an unseen step! Someone had purposefully repeatedly slammed an electronically powered door on him, made him hurt and bleed terribly and caused terrible damage when Soren had tried to pull his hand free! That wasn't normal! Also he hadn't had it treated! Why hadn't his parents or guardian taken him to hospital? Why hadn't anyone seen a bleeding child and called an ambulance? This was horrific!

"Why didn't you go to hospital? Why don't you go now?"

"It is too late," Soren said, "They would have to deconstruct the entire mess and try and put it back together. It is not worth the trouble. It only hurts some of the time, I do not take sports, and the headmaster is patronisingly generous enough to slip me painkillers when needs be. I have learnt to use my left hand will full proficiency."

This wasn't something to be so casual about! Why was he being so blasé about such an act of violence and injustice! Someone had done this to him on purpose! He had been a victimised abused child! Where were Soren's parents? Did he even have parents? He'd never mentioned them…was he an orphan? Who did he have looking after him? Was he alone as well as friendless? Why didn't he mention that? Ike's head was reeling. Soren was a little…strange. However he didn't think that meant he had a background of pain and loneliness! This was assuming he didn't have parents but…what sort of parents would let their child go without treatment for that hand?

"Well it is clear from your shocked expression we are going to get no mathematics done now," Soren said briskly, rising, "I will take this as an excuse to go and get myself something to eat. Goodbye for now, Ike."

"Wait!" He recovered from his shock too late. Soren had scooped up his things and hurried from the library with a speed that made all interruptions worthless. Ike slumped back in his chair and put his head in his hands. He no longer knew what to think! Terrible things had happened to Soren in the past and he had thought a few casual lunches and some chatting would open Soren up and make him friendlier? Sure Soren had told him about his hand but…he had spoken of it with such disregard that Ike couldn't help but feel there may be more horrors waiting in the shadows, perhaps horrible events that had caused him to be the person he was here and now. However how was Ike ever going to learn about them? He felt that Soren had only talked about his hand to distract him from how flustered he'd been after Ike listened to his ranting. He seemed have been flustered because Ike had so patiently listened to him and showed support for what he was talking about.

Wait.

That was it!

He needed to show Soren he was there. That he would support Soren. He had to be the mage's supporter and there was currently, all month in fact, one very obvious way of showing how much he wanted to support Soren! Sure Soren had complained about it extensively but it was Ike's chance! He would be Soren's supporter and…

He needed to find his sister.

* * *

><p>When he got home from school that day he flung his school bag unceremoniously onto his bedroom before hurrying to his sister's room and banging loudly on her door.<p>

"What is it?" Mist called, not opening the door.

"I need your help with something!" Ike called. He had managed to hype himself up all afternoon with his brilliant plan and now all his speech was coming out unnaturally loud. Perhaps that was just what happened when he was very excited. His loud tone seemed to have roused Mist's curiosity for she opened her door and stuck her head through the gap.

"With what?"

"Do you have any big sheets of paper, and some paint?" Ike asked her, "We need to make some banners,"

"For the mage tournament?" Mist called as she closed the door again. Ike could hear her rummaging about in her bedroom; did that mean she did have what he was after?

"Yes," Ike replied, "We're going to make some banners to support Soren. No one came to support him today and I think we should cheer him on. He works for Dad now so soon he'll be part of the family."

"Sure!" Mist said brightly, "I was going to support Tormod since he's in my Beorc-Laguz Relations class, but supporting Soren is a much better idea! It's so sad that no one cheered for him today!" She emerged from her room with a big roll of paper and a few bottles of ready-mix paint.

"I've got two lots of pink and some red," she said, lying her bottles down in the hall, "What would Soren want?"

"Let's stick with red," Ike replied, "I don't think he'd fancy pink. Right, let's make a few banners so Rolf and Boyd can have some too if they want them."

"Good idea Ike!"

The two siblings set to work. They chose the hallway outside their rooms for painting in for it was a large enough space to have all of Mist's paper rolled out on the floor. They contented themselves with idle chatter as they decided to plan out with pencil first what they were going to write on the banners. Ike, remembering Soren's hatred of the puns on the signs, told Mist they weren't to try and write anything silly and should stick with just straight forward messages of encouragement. Besides, as Mist cheekily pointed out, Ike was never very good with puns anyway. Jokes in adverts seemed to just pass him by most of the time. Mist always said this was a good thing, because most of them were cringe-worthy anyway.

"You know what," Mist mused aloud, as the doorbell rang downstairs, though neither gave it any attention. They could hear their father's heavy footfalls heading towards the door, there was no need for them to run and open it.

"What should I know?" Ike replied, picking up a large paint-brush and starting to paint large letters onto the sheets of paper.

"Well, you wouldn't know, but I borrowed a book from the school library!" Mist said cheerfully, "A book on how to write in the Ancient Language, you know, the language that herons speak? It's the language used in magic, so why don't we write some good luck messages in it? Soren's a mage, he should like that!"

"Yeah that sounds great," Ike said. Mist hurried back into her room, delighted, and Ike heard the sounds of several heavy objects hitting the floor in a series of thumps. She seemed to have emptied her school bag onto the floor. As she searched, Ike went back to painting the lettering he was currently working on. He thought Soren would appreciate having some Ancient Language on his banners. He was very adamant on how magic was about studying and weren't they studying now to make these banners? They were looking things up in books and everything! He contented himself with the simple act of painting until he heard footsteps on the stairs behind him, which suddenly stopped.

Oh damn. He really hadn't thought this through properly.

"Hello Soren," he said with all the false-bravado he could muster as he tried to subtly move the banners out of sight. However subtlety had never been his strong point, especially where huge pieces of paper and a lot of wet paint was concerned. There was no doubt at all that Soren had seen what he had been up to.

"Hello," Soren replied. He hadn't moved from the top of the stairs and was eying Ike's banners with a slight frown on his face. He didn't seem irritated though, his expression was rather unreadable.

"I've got the book!" Mist skipped out of her bedroom, right into the midst of a very awkward silence.

"Oh hi Soren!" she trilled, "We're making banners for mage tournament! We're both behind you all the way! Especially Ike, it was his idea!"

Soren seemed to inspect them both for a moment before concluding.

"I see," He turned, stepping over the posters, before shutting himself into their father's study.

"He doesn't seem very demonic," Mist commented as she sat back down on the floor with her book on the Ancient Language, "Just a bit socially awkward."

"He can probably still hear you," Ike pointed out. Mist simply laughed.

"You better look after him Ike. If anyone can stop him being so shy, you can!"

"I can still hear you!" echoed from their father's study. Mist giggled and went back to flicking through her book. Ike smiled awkwardly. He didn't think Soren was remotely shy, but then again, perhaps his little sister had a point. He definitely was going to try and look after Soren and maybe, just maybe, he would be the one to make Soren come out of his incredibly hardened shell.

You never knew what hard work and patience could do!


	6. Health and Wellbeing

**Chapter Six: Health and Well-being.**

When Ike did not see Ranulf that morning he should have known then that something was afoot. Ranulf was always in school early. The students from Gallia were always in school first simply due to time differences between the countries, or that was what Ranulf had told him anyway. It also helped the blue cat that apparently the point at which the Gallians gathered to be warped to Crimea was right by Castle Gallia, the historic home of the Gallian King and his family, as well as the country's main military base. Ranulf lived there, though why he did Ike hadn't been informed, nevertheless Ranulf was always ready bright and early to be one of the first to travel to school. Ike should have been concerned that he wasn't waiting in the classroom when Ike himself arrived. However he thought nothing of it as he sat down and was approached by someone he hadn't spoken to for quite some time.

"Good morning Ike," Elincia said pleasantly. She seemed to have chosen to move desk for the morning for she now sat on the desk in front of his, where he was sure she wasn't usually. She had her school bag and motorcycle helmet on the desk before her so it seemed she had arrived shortly before he had.

"Good morning," Ike replied, wondering why she had decided to make the change. Usually she sat near the front talking with Mia and Ilyana. The girls tended to group around her a lot, Ranulf and he had never really involved themselves with her or her friends, which made the fact she now sat in front of his desk even stranger. Of course they did know each other. They shared many of their lessons, Elincia took a few higher subjects but they did share Ike's favourite lesson together, their combat lessons were always the same. As they both preferred to wield swords they were in exactly the same class and had fought each other quite a few times in training. This had earned him an invite to one of Elincia's birthday parties some years ago at which he had felt very out of place so had declined every invitation since. That had caused a bit of a rift between them so they weren't exactly talking that often anymore…

"It's fairly empty in here, isn't it?" Elincia commented, glancing round the classroom. Ike looked about too. Yes it was. He still wondered why she was talking to him though.

"Yeah, it's strangely quiet," he replied, "Don't know why though."

"Well they did just announce the structure of the mage tourney," Elincia said knowledgably, "They put new posters up, it seems like it's quite the show. Everyone's crowded round the schedules to see what's going on."

"Isn't it just like the normal tournaments?" Ike asked, thinking back to all the previous competitions he'd witnessed. They had all pretty much followed the same structure, all about skill and the glory of battle whilst putting on a spectacle for the rest of the school to watch. Of course mages were a bit different from normal warriors, so maybe like the archers they were going to have a slightly different tournament. If Soren hadn't been involved in it however, Ike probably wouldn't have paid this event much attention. He might have cheered on Pelleas a bit if he thought the younger teen needed it, but apart from that, he wouldn't have done a lot.

"Well there's an aesthetics round," Elincia said brightly, "That's never happened before. They're bringing in some rather important judges for that round and the final duel immediately afterwards. The Headmaster's going to judge and be there in person and that dark magic teacher who almost got fired, he's judging too. And Count Bastian of Fayre is paying a special visit to the school to be the third judge!"

Apparently this last person was meant to be rather exciting however Ike didn't understand Elincia's enthusiasm so kept quiet. He didn't know who the Count of Fayre was, or that he had even existed before Elincia had just mentioned him. He obviously was some expert in magic or something otherwise he wouldn't be judging a mage tournament, or perhaps he was just important because he was a count. Ike didn't know.

"He's arriving at the same time General Delbray and Lady Delbray. They're going to be guest speakers at the school for a week. General Geoffrey is going to be giving his usual talk to the thieves and rogues about respecting the law but he's also going to give some lessons to the lance-users and also take a week's sport lessons for our year! Lucia is going to teach only the swordswomen but she's also…" Elincia tailed off mid-sentence as she noticed the faintly confused look on Ike's face.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing," Ike responded, "Just…why are you telling me all this? We haven't spoken in what must be years… Why are we suddenly supposed to be chatting now? It seems a bit…odd."

Elincia stared at him, Ike returned her gaze unaware that his wording may have been a little too frank.

"Ranulf mentioned to me that you were getting a bit lonely," Elincia said, sounding confused.

"I'm not lonely," Ike said, also rather perplexed, "Where did he get that idea? I'm currently making a new friend but that doesn't mean I don't have any others…Ranulf's my friend isn't he?"

"Who's your new friend?" Elincia asked, her tone was casual but she seemed rather suspicious about something and maybe even a little annoyed. Perhaps she didn't like the fact Ranulf had deceived her, Ike thought that seemed the most likely explanation.

"Soren," Ike replied, seeing no reason to be untruthful himself, "He's a bit anti-social but I think I'm getting there."

Elincia frowned; she definitely seemed suspicious of something now.

"Isn't Soren that rarely seen genius who everyone says is a demonic ghost?" she asked, "I heard that he has glowing red eyes, hates everything and everyone, and never leaves the school even after hours at night. He doesn't really seem like someone you should befriend."

"That's just nonsense," Ike replied firmly, "He isn't a demon or a ghost, his eyes don't glow and he's not as hateful as he's made out to be. He certainly doesn't…" He suddenly was interrupted by a loud cry from outside the classroom. What had been shouted was unintelligible however Ike had definitely heard the word 'fight' somewhere in the babble and was on his feet in an instant. Elincia followed as he weaved his way through chairs and tables, bursting through the classroom door straight into a chilling silence.

People were hurrying away from what seemed to be a standoff in the middle of the corridor. The person who had cried out had seemingly made themselves scarce for no one was talking in the area anymore. Each opponent in the standoff stood a little way from the classroom door, as if using it as a centre marker. It wasn't a fair fight by any stretch of the imagination. As Ike and Elincia stood in the doorway they could see who had taken each side. On their left were four laguz, Ranulf in the lead with Lethe and Lyre flanking him, Kyza, a student from the year above, brought up the rear by looming over all of them with his rather formidable height. They all looked deeply unsettled in addition to their evident anger and distaste. Ranulf's tail was swishing back and forth in irritation, something Ike recognised as a sure sign that the cat was steeling himself up for a fight. It surprised Ike however when he turned to his right to see who Ranulf was preparing to fight with.

Soren stood there, holding an Elfire tome in quite possibly the most obvious way he could muster. He didn't seem the slightest bit intimidated by the four Gallians that were staring him down and the Elfire tome was proving as effective as any wall to stop their advance. They seemed to have come to stalemate, neither side were saying anything or moving to attack. They were clearly poised to wipe the other out, however it was a matter of who moved first. On the other hand, if Ike could help it, there would be no need.

"What's going on?" he asked, looking between his two friends.

"I'd stay out of this if I were you," Ranulf informed him, his gaze flicking to Ike before he returned to glaring at Soren.

"Indeed that would be best," Soren continued, glaring back with a rather icy ferocity, "We would rather over-crowd such a small section of corridor."

"I'm not going anywhere until someone explains what's going on." Ike stood fast in the doorway, Elincia having to rise to her tip-toes to see over his shoulders for he was proving something of a barrier. Ranulf and Soren glared at each other for a little while longer before Soren finally broke the silence.

"The matter is really quite juvenile," he informed Ike, breaking the staring contest at last as he turned to face the duo in the doorway, "I worked a little too long this morning quite by accident which means I have to attend registration with the rest of the class instead of marking my presence in the office and returning to my essays. To attend said registration I have to go and sit at my usually-empty desk in the classroom. On arrival it seems that your feline friend and his fellow sub-human companions wish that I would have no part in the simple administration process at all."

"What did you just call us?" hissed Lethe as Elincia gasped from behind Ike. Soren made no correction of his language as even Ike looked at him in faint surprise.

"I thought your kind was meant to have superior hearing," Soren retorted, "Evidently the common perception is wrong then."

"And I thought the weak humans were meant to be intelligent!" Lethe replied, eyes narrowed, "Evidently they are just soft claw-less babies like the books at home tell!"

"Now will everyone stop being racist!" Ike proclaimed, stepping forwards with his hands outstretched as if to attempt to part the two if they suddenly charged, "If anyone reports this you're going to get expelled, if anyone gets hurt, that's a…what did they call it in assembly?" He glanced back at Elincia who looked flustered for a moment before saying.

"Inter-racial disgression," she said nervously. She clearly didn't want to be there in the midst of such tension.

"So yeah," Ike said, trying to maintain some sense of authority, "We don't want that so…just apologise to each other. Soren, apologise to Lethe, Lethe apologise to Soren."

"Why should she? She hasn't caused me any offence," Soren jibed, "How could she? It seems particular sub-humans are as unknowledgeable as they are unsightly."

"I don't want to listen to his drivelling!" Lethe yowled, "I want this sorted at once. I want this pathetic excuse for a human silenced. I'll rid the school of this silly demon child."

"I'd like to see you try," Soren turned on the spot, his coat swirling around him as he assumed a battle pose.

"Soren, no!" Ike called, but it was too late. Lethe gave an enraged yowl and transformed, suddenly charging on all four paws straight at the lone mage, claws out, teeth bared. In panic Ike flung himself from the doorway, ignoring Elincia's gasp, and sprinted across the corridor straight into the path of the furious giant cat that was stampeding down the corridor. Soren dropped his tome in surprise as Ike shoved him roughly into the nearest wall whilst effectively blocking the corridor.

Lethe seemed to notice the sudden change at the very last moment. In her own barely-contained panic she withdrew her claws and attempted to skid to a halt, hissing as she received carpet-burns from the rough floor as she tried to stop. The impact however was inevitable. Ike toppled just as Lethe attempted to transform back, the result being that the cat collided with the same wall as Soren had, and Ike ended up with his back on the ground. There was a moment of silence, broken by Ike sitting up with a groan as Lethe went to join the other Gallians back at the other end of the standoff stretch of corridor. The first person to speak was Soren.

"Ike get up, I'm taking you to the nurse,"

"I'm fine," Ike objected, giving a louder groan as he staggered to his feet, leaning heavily against the wall. Soren scowled and pursed his lips.

"You are clearly not fine, we are going to the nurse to get you looked at."

"I was only winded," Ike replied, leaning against the wall with a hand pressed to his torso, "I'll be alright… Let's not have that happen again…if it's all the same with you." He looked at Soren to see he was standing before him, massaging his covered hand with his healthy one. He was scowling heavily and Ike was fairly sure he was in pain, though his expression only made him seem irritated. With a sudden jolt of realisation Ike wondered whether Soren had used his hands to brace himself for his sudden impact with the wall once Ike had shoved him. That would have certainly agitated Soren's destroyed hand.

"Are you alright?" he asked Soren, still in quite a bit of pain himself.

"I am not important," Soren snapped, "We are going to the nurse, now, no objecting."

"If it makes you happy," Ike moaned, leaning on the wall had been such a comfortable position in comparison to standing up and now he just hurt more. Perhaps he really was damaged after all. Still, it could have gone worse, someone could have been seriously injured, or a teacher could have heard the racism and had Lethe and Soren expelled. Talking of teachers, they were going to be late for registration if they went to the school nurse.

"Can you tell the teacher where Soren and I am if we don't get back in time?" he asked Ranulf as Soren seemed to be becoming impatient at his attempts to resist medical treatment. Ranulf on the other hand looked rather exasperated, but he nodded in agreement none the less.

"You're the most unbelievable beorc I've ever seen," he called after Ike as Soren tugged insistently on the swordsman's arm to get him to move faster.

"Err…thanks?" Ike replied, picking up his pace.

"I don't know whether that's a compliment or not," Ranulf continued, "You're friends with laguz, you save weakling kids from bullies, you help simply because you can…and now you're trying to care for some racist demonic creature in the hope you can befriend him into some form of normalcy. I don't know whether you're amazing or downright mad."

Soren's tugging became more insistent and Ike had only a minute or so to call out,

"He's not demonic, he's just…complicated!" before he picked up his pace and obliged Soren with a fast walk. He immediately regretted his quickening of pace. Yes, it really did seem like he had taken some damage on that impact not only on his front either, his back hurt like hell and moving was only making it worse. Well, it was nothing he couldn't endure but still…it wasn't pleasant.

"If there was a heal staff in the vicinity I wouldn't demand that you moved," Soren informed him as they made their way down a short set of stairs, "However we are entirely in the wrong block of the school for any sort of medicinal equipment so unfortunately you'll have to endure until we get to the nurse's room."

"It doesn't hurt that much," Ike lied through gritted teeth, "Sorry…about Ranulf… He's been acting odd recently but I didn't put two and two together than it might be related to my talking to you."

"I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner quite frankly," Soren replied dismissively, "I didn't expect anything different. What is more concerning is your willingness to throw yourself into impending danger….please do not do that in future… It will impede your efficiency when you officially work for your father's company."

Was it just Ike's imagination or was Soren acting oddly? He seemed to be more business-like than usual and he simply couldn't look Ike directly in the eye, or the face for that matter. He kept his gaze fixed ahead, occasionally glancing back to see whether Ike was keeping up but when he did so he could never look directly at him. For someone who usually had such a piercing gaze, it was rather odd behaviour. Was this Soren's way of expressing guilt? Was he feeling bad for what had just happened? He hadn't said thank you or apologised yet, but that seemed just like him. He was a closed book, he wasn't about to make any sort of tearful display of emotion anytime soon. However it was good to know he had been affected by the fact Ike may have broken ribs on his behalf, it was better than nothing.

"Don't feel bad about any of this," Ike said, a rather large ache forming about his chest, "I couldn't have let them hurt you. They were definitely the ones picking on you…I mean there were four of them and one of you. The numbers weren't fair."

"Hmm," was the only reply he got. Soren still wasn't looking at him, so Ike decided to try again.

"So why were they ganging up on you like that?" he asked, "I don't see why Ranulf doesn't like the idea of us talking."

"The same reason as to why all conflicts arise," Soren replied, his tone was still strict, "It's the same reason why Pelleas finds himself cupboard-bound so often, or Nephenee gets her hair pulled by the upper-class students in the year above."

"Because they're different?" Ike suggested as they reached the bottom of their stairs. Being different still didn't explain the situation though. Lethe wasn't trying to pull Soren's hair or lock him in a cupboard; she was trying to kill him! Not only that, Ranulf and company were going to let her do it too! This had to go beyond being just 'different'. Different did not justify attempted murder, Ike was in half a mind to report Lethe, but that did mean he'd have to admit Soren had been racist too, and he didn't want Soren kicked out as well.

"Ike," Soren suddenly addressed him.

"Yes?"

"It's because I'm complicated," Soren replied, "It's because I don't fit into the nice neat order of things such events as that attack happen. If you stay around me, a lot more of those events are going to occur…" Ike interrupted him.

"I'm not going to leave you alone if that's what you're asking," he objected, "That's not going to solve anything."

"Believe it or not, that wasn't what I was going to say," Soren snapped, "If you hadn't of cut across me, what I would've said is that you shouldn't put yourself in danger every time something like this happens. I can cope well enough on my own; I always have, so when there is a next time let me deal with it."

"Alone?" Ike questioned. Soren's explanation didn't seem too different to what he'd originally said. Soren wanted to face those that hated him alone, and if he was doing that Ike may as well not be around for all the good he would do. If people Ike thought were friendly actually wanted Soren gone then of course he wasn't going to leave Soren alone! There seemed to be far too much danger in Soren's life for it to be a comfortable one. Yesterday Ike had found out someone had deliberately slammed an electric door on Soren's hand, and now Ike's Gallian friends wanted to kill the mage! Something was not right about Soren's situation and if he wasn't going to share what is was then the least Ike could do was try and support him through it. Nobody could survive completely on their own, Ike had never understood how they could. Soren must need someone even if he didn't want to admit it.

"Yes, alone," Soren said firmly, "I've endured this long, I think I can manage to keep my record going." Soren suddenly took a sharp left, straight through a slightly ajar door. Ike had been thinking about their conversation so much that he hadn't even noticed that the nurse's office was getting ever closer, or the fact that whilst worrying about Soren, he'd thought less about the pain so therefore he hadn't been hurting as much. Well it most definitely hurt now.

They were greeted by a surprisingly familiar figure when they entered the small brightly lit office. The office was a rather large cheerful place, with brightly painted cupboards, comfortable beds and chairs for the injured, however the happy vibe was rather ruined by the posters that had been tacked everywhere bearing messages like 'Untrimmed Claws Cost Lives' and 'Do Not Drink and Ride' there was also one of Soren's 'Say No to Olivi Grass' posters. Ike noticed that there was another, happier, poster, stuck on top of Soren's one. This could only be explained by the new nurse that was currently rushing to meet them. One look at the gruesome Olivi Grass would probably have made Rhys faint.

"What are you doing here?" Ike asked the priest, surprised he wasn't out working with his father.

"The school nurse went on maternity leave," Rhys explained, gesturing both of the teenagers into seats, "And they couldn't get any doctors in, so the Headmaster called up Commander Greil on the chance the company had a healer, so here I am. I must admit…you do get some nasty injuries at this school don't you?"

"There is a great deal more combat here than at regular schools," Soren said stiffly, "Which is why we are here. Ike got flattened by a fully transformed cat laguz. I think he may have damaged ribs."

"How did that happen?" Rhys asked, sounding surprised as he fetched a Heal Staff from the other side of the room.

"She was aiming for Soren," Ike groaned, sitting down was not a good position pain-wise, "And basically I got in the way."

"On purpose," Soren added before asking "Rhys, the school nurse may have left something for me. May I?"

"Oh, your medication is at the back," Rhys gestured to the same cupboard he had collected the staff, "She left a note saying to leave you be but…are you sure I can't look at the injury?"

"Quite sure," Soren replied briskly before striding across the room to collect whatever had been left for him. Rhys watched him go with a rather concerned look on his face.

"Don't mind him," Ike assured Rhys quietly so Soren couldn't overhear what he was about to say, "I think he finds it hard to rely on anyone else. He's not very good at saying thank you, or taking compliments, or anything like that."

"And you're trying to help him out of his solidarity?" Rhys asked. Ike nodded in response and the priest smiled.

"Well, it would be best if we inspected the damage then," he said, speaking louder now all confidentiality had passed, "Ike, can you take off your shirt, I need to work out whether you've broken anything. The bruising if there is any yet should give some indication."

Ike took his shirt off and Rhys looked rather queasy.

"You've come up bruised already! That was quite a knock. Let me go and get a Mend Staff from the store."

He left the room just as Soren decided to make his presence known once more. The two actions may have been linked but Soren merely sat down, a small white packet in his hands. Ike stared pointedly at it, not entirely caring that he had been left half-unclothed.

"Antiseptic cream and painkillers," Soren informed him, "For my hand of course. Though I find they do sometimes prove useful for other matters."

All the questions that had previously distracted Ike from their tutoring session suddenly resurfaced. It certainly didn't help that Soren decided in that moment to take off his bandage-glove and test out his antiseptic cream. Admittedly Ike was sitting beside him with a purpling chest but still…that hand was gruesome. Battle injuries Ike could deal with, even the horrible ones they saw in history or safety videos, plus he'd sustained a few himself, however Soren's hand was quite something else. It wasn't a product of any sort of honourable battle, it was caused by abuse and neglect, things Ike simply couldn't stand. The question remained, one that he had to ask. Something that would explain about Soren a little or so Ike hoped.

"How could your parents have let that hand go untreated?" he asked, blatantly staring as Soren gently applied the transparent cream to his hand which twitched ever so slightly as he spread the solution over its tattered structure.

"I have no parents," Soren said simply, not even turning to Ike. He merely continued coating himself in the medicinal substance.

"What happened to them?" Ike asked. Soren seemed to be in a straight-forward mood, perhaps he would be inclined to be truthful to simply prevent Ike from asking further questions. He seemed to have judged correctly.

"I have no idea," Soren replied, "Probably still alive somewhere." He went back to his cream as the sound of creaking boxes came from the storage room next door to the nurse's office.

"So who raised you?" Ike asked. Soren's statements were making sense. He had no parents, yet his parents were probably still alive somewhere. That really didn't seem possible unless his parents had simply decided to abandon him…but what sort of people would do that?

"A woman," Soren's tone was utterly blank and indifferent, "No idea who she was. Neither do I care. She was vile, always shouting at and striking me. She got bored of that eventually. Sold me to a mad old sage when I was about three, a thousand gold I think was the deal. I read it in the old man's ledger some years later. A reasonable deal for her, children are often quite useless at such an age. I guess it was a reasonable deal for me as well. I've found being beaten and burnt really are the most effective learning aids when it comes to basic skills and magic."

Ike stared at him. Well…well no wonder Soren was complicated. What kind of monsters would do that with a child? Shouted at, abused, sold, beaten, and burnt? That wasn't how you treated a child, that wasn't even how you treated an animal! Not only that, here Soren was describing it as calmly as if this was a regular occurrence that was only to be expected. He opened his mouth to demand how could that possibly happen, but Soren cut across him almost immediately.

"But..."

"But nothing," Soren interrupted, "Before you start talking about injustice and abuse and quite possibly that I should have gone to the police, let me just say that in most scenarios the world does not permit such idealistic plans. Justice is a façade, exclusive to those who operate it. I have no doubt that thousands of children across Tellius have slipped under its gaze rendering it quite blind adults too, for as long as there is no personal gain in helping someone, there are very few people who would put the effort in, be they human or not. See, I am being un-racist there as I have insulted both species by using both their degrading titles in such a small space of time."

Ike didn't think that was how racism worked but he had suddenly thought at the mention of the term 'human' instead of beorc that Soren couldn't be racist he just…hated everyone. And who could blame him for it? No one had ever been kind to him when he was growing up so no wonder he distrusted everyone. Ike had heard somewhere that want happened to you when you were very young sometimes impacted on your whole life. Shame he couldn't remember anything before the age of about seven but still…Soren clearly had been affected. However there was a flaw in Soren's argument, it being that people wouldn't help others unless there was something in it for them. That was clearly false.

"I'm not your friend to gain anything from it. I want to help you and I'm not asking for anything in return."

"You're doing it for tutoring."

"No!" Ike protested, "You gave me tutoring, insisting on it. I didn't ask for it. You did it because you wanted to. You helped me. Did you do that for gain?"

"Perhaps I did," Soren retorted, "Now there is a more important matter at hand. Your father's mercenary-priest is being awfully quiet in the storage cupboard. I think he may have been caught in a box avalanche, it happens. Stay here and I will go and see." He slipped his glove back on, gave Ike's chest a quick stare, before leaving the room as he tucked his medicine into his coat pockets.

Ike sighed, slumping forwards before letting out a grunt and jerking back upright again. It seemed slumping was a bit too painful to be maintained. What also couldn't be maintained was the violence that had gone on today. This afternoon he was going to talk to Ranulf, whether the Gallian wanted it or not, and he was going to get answers about how this whole thing started. He wanted to why Ranulf didn't like Soren and why he thought ganging up on him was the answer to that. This was turning out to be the most stressful day he'd ever had. First the fight, now the revelation about Soren's childhood and on top of that Rhys seemed to have been defeated by some cardboard boxes. He could only hope Ranulf was going to be in a good mood when he found him because if Ranulf was in a good mood he was chatty.

Ike needed a rather serious chat with him right now.


	7. Politics and Ethics

**Chapter Seven: Politics and Ethics.**

It turned out that Rhys had in fact not fallen victim to a deluge of boxes, however as far as Ike was aware, Soren was fully justified in his assumption that he had. It remained very quiet until the mage returned with the healer and Rhys hastily apologised that the store room was in a state of chaos and it was incredibly hard to find anything in there right now. He promised to tidy up as soon as he had the time but there had been so many injuries recently he had scarcely had the time. With his apologies accepted, Rhys hastily raised his newly discovered staff and restored Ike to full health.

"Just be careful," Rhys told him as Ike put his shirt back on, "I'd suggest sitting out of any combat lessons for the next few days, the magic will hold until your body naturally heals you to full fitness however you don't want to give it more work than necessary."

"Sure," Ike got to his feet and was about to inquire as to how long he should avoid when he noticed Soren was already half out the door. Why was he so keen to escape all of a sudden?

"Where are you going?" he asked. Soren didn't reply and merely slipped from the room with a silence that soon resonated about the nurse's office. Ike glanced at Rhys and the newly instated nurse stared straight back. Ike knew it was somewhat foolish for anyone to try and work out exactly what went through Soren's mind, but still his departure was unexpected. He checked the clock. No, class hadn't started yet, there was nothing Soren needed to hurry off to, unless his extra work really was that pressing. Surely he wouldn't have stayed with Ike in this room if he really needed to do his extra studies that badly. Also he had left his medicine behind; it was still on the chair he had been sitting on. Rhys, who seemed to have noticed this before Ike had, crossed the room to pick it up before inspecting the contents of the white paper bag. The small squeeze-tube and brown bottle of pills looked like any tube and pills Ike had ever seen, yet Rhys seemed rather surprised by them.

"These are rather strong," he commented, his shock evident in his voice, "Soren must be in a rather considerable amount of pain on what must be a regular basis to warrant so much."

"What do you mean?" Ike demanded.

"Half a dozen of these," Rhys shook the bottle slightly, "Can leave the user catatonic…dead-looking."He hastily explained what he meant when Ike made a confused expression.

"Let's just say you couldn't buy these in a shop," Rhys continued simply, "They'd have to ordered in from the company that makes them. This isn't the case for the antiseptic cream but…ah, of course. The Headmaster would have got them."

"What?" Ike was even more baffled. Then again, didn't that happen a lot concerning Soren? Rhys evidently knew what was going on but merely smiled and waved a hand as if trying to brush the matter aside. His smile verged on awkwardness and the following murmur that Ike could barely discern seemed placating but left him completely in the dark until he heard a mumble of 'your father'.

"What does Dad know?"

"Your father…well he…" Rhys began to flounder for words, "Sir is a very well travelled man and he has seen a lot of…of different people. He…he recruited Soren because…because he understands that people…people come from many different backgrounds."

"What has that got to do with the Headmaster?" Ike was still confused. He knew people came from all walks of life, what did that have to do with anything? So Soren was a bit different, but so were so many people, his father hired for talent not because he wanted a diverse company. Also what had his father's job got to do with school and their Headmaster?

"Oh w..would you look at the time!" Rhys pushed gently on Ike's shoulders, "You..you should be going to class, don't want me to tell your father you've been skiving would you?"

"You wouldn't do that," Ike laughed. Rhys raised an eyebrow at him, perhaps it was an attempt to be threatening but Ike merely smiled.

"See you around," he said before leaving the room, something in his chest twinging slightly as he walked a little too fast.

* * *

><p>He did not see Soren for the rest of that day, however that perhaps was for the best. He had not lost his determination to go and speak to Ranulf about the incident in the corridor and if Soren had been there it would probably had resulted in round two rather than a reasonable discussion. Even though he did wonder what had become of Soren, he had to make sure there were no more fights. Therefore that lunch time he didn't go hunt down Soren in the library but bought a pudding with his school lunch and used it to keep Ranulf firmly where he could see him.<p>

"Explain," he demanded as Ranulf eagerly picked up his spoon, anticipating his free dessert.

"Explain what?" Ranulf asked, mismatched eyes focussed on the bowl in Ike's hand.

"Why you've decided to become a bully." Knowing full well Ranulf could probably snatch the bowl from his hands if he wanted to, Ike resolutely kept the dessert away from his friend's grasp. It was his only leverage and even it seemed not to have the desired effect. Ranulf merely rolled his eyes and sighed exasperatedly at his explanation, it was as if Ike was proving mildly irritating to him and not accusing him of what Ike ruled an unforgivable crime.

"Ike, I wasn't being a bully…"

"It was four versus one!" Ike interrupted, "And you were clearly after a fight. How is that not bullying?"

Ranulf sighed again. He knew Ike's stance on bullying very well. The beorc's rather extraordinary morals were responsible for their friendship in the first place and his open mind was something that definitely should be encouraged. Not in this case however. Ranulf was irritable just from that unsuccessful meeting in the corridor and now he had to somehow explain it all.

"It just isn't," he retorted, "I understand that you're trying to be a hero in converting Soren to a normal sociable being, however you've got to accept that some things aren't possible however hard you try. Making Soren acceptable is like…lifting a mountain. Even if you do manage to change it a little, a mountain is still unliftable. We were just ridding you of trouble."

"You're still bullying him even now!" Ike replied, "I don't want to change him. I just want to make sure he's alright with opening up a little, I just want to be there for him. You're making him sound like he isn't even a person!"

"He isn't."

The look Ranulf received from Ike was thunderous.

"Look," Ranulf reasoned, "Come on, let's go outside. Forget lunch, I need to explain something to you."

Though he looked in no mood to, Ike did as he was told and followed Ranulf into the corridor outside the school cafeteria. It was mostly deserted, being well into the lunch hour, and if anyone passed them by they were in too much of a hurry to see if there was any lunch left to pay them any attention. Ranulf dragged Ike to one side out of the way next to a door marked 'Private'.

"Right, let's get this straight," it was easy to tell Ranulf was getting frustrated, his tail was whipping back and forth and he looked ready to snap at the next person who opposed him, "This isn't something anyone is supposed to talk about. I feel like I've broken several laws just by implying it for Ashera's sake."

"What on earth does that have to do with the fact you're bullying Soren?" Ike demanded once more.

"I'm trying to explain myself here," Ranulf insisted, as if Ike was simply being impatient, "It's not easy, it's one of those social taboos. Bear with me."

Ike raised an eyebrow at him, evidently unimpressed.

"According to most the fact that beorc and laguz interact together in this school is taboo, and I don't see you trying to shy away from that," he retorted

"That's not a real taboo, that's stupidity. What I'm talking about is something accepted by both beorc and laguz, no matter what their views…" In his anger Ike had decided to ignore politeness and simply interrupt his friend in desperation to make him see that he did indeed need to apologise for being a bully.

"So everyone is supposed to hate Soren or people like him?"

"There are…beings, that look like people but simply aren't. They are not people, they are an…"

Suddenly the door behind them opened and they had to immediately leap out of the way. They stood each side of the door as if providing a guard and Ike watched as Ranulf's face visibly went red, then purple, and then a rather apprehensive pale and sickly colour. The new arrival seemed to think nothing of it.

"Not arguing are we boys?"

"No sir," Ike replied.

Ranulf's hand clenched into fists as Ike's swordsmanship teacher emerged from what was evidently some entrance reserved just for staff. Even Ranulf did not dare oppose him. Whatever rank Ranulf had outside of school, not even he dared oppose the tall and mysterious swordsman who claimed to come from the desert in Begnion. He was an enigma around school with more rumours about him than clear facts. In that way, Ike thought, he was a bit like Soren. On the other hand, he was a master swordsman, he had achieved the rank of Trueblade and was unrivalled by any in the school, whereas Soren was a mage, though like the teacher, unmatched in his discipline. Ike couldn't help but notice there were a few similarities now. Both Soren and Stefan were very mysterious and had a lot of rumours about them, mostly negative. On the other hand, Stefan was a lot more friendly.

"That's alright then," the teacher said, grinning in a way that could only be described as smug. He glanced towards Ranulf as he did so.

"Please, continue your conversation, don't mind me."

Ranulf glared but said nothing to the teacher who remained where he stood.

"See you around Ike," he growled before stalking off back into the canteen, undoubtedly off to eat his fair share of pudding. Ike meanwhile turned to his teacher in curiosity, confused as why Ranulf had reacted in such a way.

"Did you hear what Ranulf said sir?" he asked. Stefan merely nodded.

"Do you understand what he was saying? Are there people who aren't people? What's that got to do with Soren?"

"Whatever race they are, people can speak a great deal of nothing,usually because those close to them do it too," Stefan chuckled, "Just use your head for this one Ike. Think it through, come up with your own theory about Soren and see where that leads you."

"Soren's definitely a person," Ike said decisively, "You don't have to be sociable to be a person,"

"Very true," Stefan laughed, "Oh, and by the way. You need to come and see me after Advanced classes tomorrow. We need you for the mage tournament. We need some of the best to filter through all those mages. You never know, Soren might like your contribution."

"Of course sir,"

With that Stefan strode off down the corridor, towards the administrative offices that stood behind the cafeteria. Ike stood there, watching him leave. He frowned as he tried to puzzle out who and what to believe. He respected both of them, he had thought both his best friend and his teacher were trustworthy, but they had such different opinions! He couldn't possibly believe there were such things as people who weren't people, people who should be regarded as animals - which he was fairly sure Ranulf was about to say before they were interrupted. Yet Ranulf was his best friend and he wouldn't want to make Ike's life a misery, he seemed only to want to protect him from what he evidently viewed as danger.

This didn't make sense at all. Usually when things didn't make sense he'd go and ask his father for advice but in this case he didn't feel like he should. With these differing opinions about maybe he should come up with his own instead of trying to find yet another potentially-conflicting view point. No, he should keep on talking with Soren as usual and perhaps everything would piece together with time. His efforts with Soren shouldn't be interrupted with matters such as these. Besides, he was going to help in the mage tournament it seemed, surely that was a good way to get closer to him!

He was just about to go back to the cafeteria when the door marked 'private' opened once more and another man entered the corridor. Ike tried not to stare but he had never seen this man in the school corridors before. He was very tall and very well built, having to turn to the side to fit through the small unobtrusive door. He was wearing what seemed to be a military uniform, or that of a police officer, Ike didn't recognise the logo but the man's clothes and the large sword he had strapped to his back in a regulation case showed he was clearly of an official armed discipline. His uniform was a dark wine red with golden ornamentation which made his dark hair and piercing dark gaze seem rather intimidating. Ike had no idea what such an official man was doing in a school.

"Could you tell me the way towards the Headmaster's office?" asked the man. Ike's eyes widened. His voice was familiar…no, not familiar but…he'd heard it somewhere before! He was certain of it yet he had no idea when and why he would have ever seen this man before. His uniform was not Crimean, he knew that much. This was a foreign military man who he could never have… Something about his face was familiar too but why?

"Yes, it's up the stairs, down the corridor on the left, take a right down the corridor full of paintings and you'll find his secretary there," he replied, "They'll say if he's here or not. He's often absent."

"Of course, thank you." With that the man departed in the same direction as Stefan had leaving Ike even more confused. This was proving to be quite the baffling afternoon. Was this what school was going to be like now? Even without Soren nearby the questions kept piling up and he had the feeling not all of them could be solved by simply getting the mage to open up. Well the only way was forwards and he wasn't one to give up. First of all he'd get Soren to open up and then perhaps the mage would assist him in investigating the notion of people who technically weren't people. Yes, that seemed like a plan.

Ike went back to the cafeteria to find that Ranulf had eaten his lunch and departed with Ike's pudding. Glancing towards the back table whilst he did so, Ike wolfed down his food, wondering where Soren could be, his usual spot empty. Maybe he was working. Perhaps he was meeting the Headmaster. No, that strange man needed to see the Headmaster. Ike was suddenly struck by how little he actually knew about the man who ran the school. No. He didn't need any more questions today. Soren first, and then he'd work through the rest of his troubles. At this very moment however his main concern was lunch. Problem solving was never very fun if you did it on an empty stomach.


	8. Management and Business

**Chapter Eight: Management and Business.**

Ike was fairly sure Soren had been in his house last night. The mage had been very quiet about it and seemed to have snuck in whilst Ike was engrossed with his homework however due to the fact a mug had disappeared from the kitchen downstairs and he heard the noisy kettle boil more than it usually did, he guessed Soren was there and having cups of coffee. There was also the not so subtle hint of Oscar, Shinon and his father having an argument in the lounge. Apparently Soren had noticed some unexplained expenditure in their books and had tracked the payments through every month. After questioning several armouries, he had discovered that the spending correlated to the rising and falling prices of iron bows. The only bow user amongst them was of course Shinon but he was far too proficient to require such a basic weapon. It was Shinon however who needed to be confronted and when Ike's father had got a confession out of him, it seemed Oscar had needed to be called. Ike hadn't heard what this confession was but now there was a lot of shouting. Oscar only ever got angry over one thing – mistreatment of his siblings, so Ike could only assume either Rolf or Boyd was involved.

Ike had no idea when Soren had arrived and similarly, wasn't entirely sure when he had left either. He didn't even know how Soren travelled to and from the hamlet either. There were no bus stops nearby and though it was a twenty minute walk to school, it was probably significantly more to wherever Soren lived. The school was on the very edge of the city, mostly surrounded by country-side, so if Soren didn't get a bus, or have a bicycle…he'd had to walk quite a long way for only a few hours' work. Ike made a note to ask Soren about this if Soren was feeling particularly talkative. He may have to wait some time for that.

On arriving early at school the next day, Ike deliberately passed his class room and headed off to the library. He found it seemingly deserted but that didn't stop him going over to the table that seemed to be owned not by the school, but by Soren. He wasn't there, probably working on something else Ike thought, but there were clear signs that he had been. The books on the desk were definitely beyond the school curriculum and Ike couldn't see how half of them had anything to do with what Soren studied. Ike scanned some of the titles. "_Preserve and Remain – A Compendium of Defensive Tactics for Civil or International Warring_." _ "The Edible Wilderness – A Guide to Survival Through Plant-Life." "Beorc-Laguz Relations – It Can Work." _ Ike frowned. That one was his Beorc-Laguz Relations textbook. Soren didn't study that, he thought it useless, he'd said so himself. This made a whole lot more sense now he'd seen Soren face off Ranulf in the corridor. Soren had a very good reason for thinking beorc and laguz relations couldn't work if he was used to being attacked like that.

Ike looked about the desk as if searching for clues of Soren's whereabouts. The stacks of books were very neat despite how numerous they were and there wasn't any of the usual litter of lost papers and stationary that usually filled the library. Deciding he could probably learn no more from the desk, Ike turned, only to double back as something cut viciously at his ear. Grasping the side of his head he looked at the offending door beside him and realised he'd cut himself on one of the numerous locks that gleamed on its plain white surface. Ike had never known what that door was for and why it was so heavily locked. He had heard a rumour that thieves were kept away from that tempting array of locks by the fact that anyone who tried was immediately electrically shocked. Another rumour said it wasn't electricity but thunder magic that shocked people, but either way, the door was far too deadly for wandering hands. The school was evidently storing something very important in there. Ike knew it was best not to pry into the affairs of such authority.

On the topic of school authority, he had a meeting with his swordsmanship teacher about the mage tourney today. Though the mage tourney seemed slightly different Ike could have a fair guess about what the next stage of it would involve and why he had to help with it. The first round was generally to create a pool of contestants with an easier challenge. Before the mages it had been the turn of those on winged mounts and they had to throw a javelin or hand axe accurately at a certain number of targets to qualify. The mages had had to destroy a certain distance of targets. The next round would probably involve filtering those contestants until they had what was probably the top twenty or so. This probably involved combat to rat out the weakest who were just used to hitting stationary targets rather than people.

Ike wasn't far wrong. Any official meetings, be they with staff or students, were held in a series of meeting rooms in the area of the school that was fabled to contain the headmaster. All the doors had little brassy nameplates on them and as Ike approached the meeting he kept an eye out for one that mentioned the Headmaster. He was disappointed not to find one but when he entered the meeting room he was cheered back up again by the sight of the diagram on the blackboard titled **Castle At War.**

This was brilliant. Ike had never participated in a tournament where they had erect the huge structure in the school training fields but he had seen tournaments when they had. He had no idea how it went up so fast but some days he would come into school and see the huge structure with its turrets and towers consuming the training and sports fields with its immensity. It was a miniature fortress complete with five floors, excluding the towers, multiple winding stairs, treasure chambers, and most importantly, a vast throne room that served as the target of the supposed siege that was taking place. The task differed slightly year on year but the last step was always the would be rounds of students competing and only the first ten in each round to get to the throne room successfully and beat the main enemy there got through to the next round. In the end the competitors would be filed down to thirty students and then the real fun began. Ike had always wanted a go at the Castle at War but they'd never used it for the swordsmen before.

"Right on time I see,"

Ike jumped. His swordsmanship tutor had the bizarre and potentially frightening ability to appear out of nowhere. It was if he didn't need to use doors and simply materialised up out of the floor. The door however had just opened as a group of students entered, only a few of which Ike recognised. He could however tell from how they dressed that none of them were mages. They mostly had short hair or had it tied up tight. Light trousers and leggings meant general combat users and from the fact he himself and Elincia had made an appearance, he guessed they were all sword users. After being in this school a while, you learnt how to tell. He never did understand why your class manifested into your clothing however. He wore what he did because it was practical however some of the others seemed not to be.

"Right!" announced Stefan, "Glad you're all here. If you've been listening to anything I've been saying in our lessons then you would've already taken in your surroundings. From that you would've realised that the next stage of this month's tourney is coming up and the responsibility of providing a little adversity has fallen to the sword users this time. You're going to be the enemies in Castle at War."

There was a lot of excited murmurs. This was the next best thing to actually being in a tournament. Castle at War was always fun though they'd never been chosen to be the enemies before.

"There's going to be three rounds of contestants. You lot are going to be facing the first round, which are the top mages from the qualifying round. The rules are simple, the mages have to get to the throne room of the castle and defeat the boss there , which in this round will be Ike." Ike blinked in surprise as everyone turned round to look at him.

"The first mage to defeat the boss will get to sit on the throne and be crowned that round's champion, the next nine contestants to get to the throne room will qualify for the next round. There are three rounds so you lot and the other sword users I'm seeing tomorrow will be whittling down all a hundred to only thirty. You will have some thieves with you as well as they've decided to add a treasure aspect, however this is very much the same as when the axe users got to have a go two months ago. Understand?"

There was a babble of 'understood' and 'yes sir'.

"Right, if you're under fourteen please pick up a form from the desk and give it to your parents to sign. This is of course dangerous, but so is walking out in the street so I'm really not sure what the admin were suggesting. Ike, pick one up too. You're likely to be facing about five mages at once. You're all dismissed!"

The little crowd dispersed as a few of their number went to collect themselves some forms. As Ike picked one up he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Ike, a word?"

He nodded and followed Stefan to a corner of the room. They waited until everyone had left, Ike watching their retreating backs with slight curiosity. So…he was going to be a boss enemy to the most powerful mages in the school. He guessed that meant he was quite a good swordsman. One in a lot of danger, but a good one nevertheless. Stefan seemed to have followed his line of thought.

"You are a very capable swordsman, that's why we've given you this job," he said, "Also you lack the sort of delusions others can get from being given a position of responsibility."

"Delusions?" What did he mean? Ike couldn't see how anyone could be delusional from taking part in the tournament. Yes some people did like to feel important but that shouldn't be the case here.

"Delusions of superiority," Stefan answered, taking a seat at the head of the table and gesturing for Ike to sit down, "What I'm saying is that you're reliable and won't show any favouritism. If we gave the role to a teacher, well we've all got favourites so that wouldn't do."

"So teachers do have favourites," Ike murmured, more to himself than anyone else. It made Stefan laugh however.

"Of course we do, it's natural," he paused, checked the door, and stopped smiling abruptly.

"That isn't what I wanted to talk to you about." He had become so serious so quickly that Ike was rather taken aback. One moment he had been jovial and grinning, the next his brow had wrinkled and his eyes had taken on a dangerous look about them.

"What's the matter sir?" Ike asked, the added seriousness seemed to demand a title to be used.

"Shortly after this round of the magic tournament I'm going to disappear," Stefan said grimly, "And by disappear I literally mean so. I'll never be seen in Crimea again. However I have some unfinished business here. In my absence, I want you to keep an eye on Soren."

Disappear? Soren? What was going on? Stefan had been at the school as long as Ike had, or so he thought. As soon as he had been able to be put in advance classes Stefan had taught him. He was a little friendlier than other teachers but Ike saw no reason why anyone would want him to leave or why he'd want to leave himself. The tutor had always seemed like he was enjoying himself at school. However maybe that was just what he wanted them to think?

"What's happening?" he asked, confusion obvious.

"Nothing that hopefully concerns you or this school," Stefan replied, "The Headteacher knows of course but apart from him, you and Soren, let's keep this to ourselves."

"Soren knows?"

"If he doesn't now, he'll work it out. It's nothing to worry about, just keep an eye on him."

"He's perfectly capable of looking after himself," Ike reasoned, "He doesn't want me hanging around him all the time, he said so."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that." With that, Stefan got to his feet and had excused himself and departed before Ike had even risen from his chair. Ike frowned. What in Ashera's name was going on? Soren somehow knew his teacher despite not being a swordsman and there was evidently some sort of connections between them that neither was telling him about. It may be just him, but Ike couldn't imagine the two getting along. Soren wouldn't put up with Stefan, despite both of them being rather matter of fact, and he probably would dislike the fact Stefan wanted him guarded and watched. Something bigger was going on here. It seemed something bigger was always going on where Soren was concerned. He was going to work it out eventually.

As soon as he'd gone and got himself some lunch, Ike went looking for Soren. He found him in the library using craft glue to the stick the soles of his shoes back in place. The underside had peeled completely off the leather of his sandals. Thinking about it, why was he even wearing sandals in this weather? Not only was he going to get cold feet but surely it wasn't safe during his magic practice? He could burn them by accident! That was probably why they were bandaged.

"Is this really so fascinating that you must stare quite so openly?" Soren's irritation came as no surprise.

"I've got a spare pair of shoes at home if you want them," Ike offered, taking a seat at Soren's usual table. He noticed the books from earlier had gone and were replaced by more seemingly random titles. There were books on cooking whilst camping, tomes on birds and something that looked like a text on laguz history. Soren really did have a strange mixture of tastes. He didn't even like laguz! Why was he reading up on them?

"Your offer is socially acceptable but I don't accept charity," came the sharp reply, "My shoes will be perfectly functional once the glue has dried. Before you ask, no, I do not have any other shoes."

Ike shut his mouth. Yes, he had been about to ask whether he could go get any other shoes Soren had for him from his home. He had no idea where Soren's home was but even if it was on the other side of the city he would've gone and got them. The buses would have taken him there. Instead he decided to ask:

"How long will the glue take to dry?"

"It took slightly over four hours last time this happened," Soren said, slipping off his other sandal which was equally wrecked.

"How are you going to get home? I could ask Oscar to give you a lift. Your shoes won't be dry until after school finishes."

"That won't be necessary," Soren replied, "I can get home perfectly well. I am also not adverse to walking in wet shoes."

"Where do you live?" Ike asked. Soren stared at him long and hard. It was another of his patented soul-seeking glares that made Ike feel like he had shrunk slightly and was now being inspected from top to toe. It wasn't too silly a question he thought. Soren knew where he lived and Ike was simply concerned how he was supposed to get home without functional shoes. Judging by what Soren had said this wasn't the first time those sandals had broken and Soren only had one pair of shoes. That led onto a new set of questions that Soren probably hadn't meant for him to wonder about. He had no parents, he lived with nobody, he worked for Ike's father for a living as well as doing odd jobs for the school. Neither job would probably provide a reasonable income. The real money in his father's line of work came from whatever they did at night and Soren wasn't part of that. Also if he was only getting odd jobs from the school. Well the fact he was repairing his shoes again showed he didn't have a lot of money to be spending on new clothes. Thinking about it… he had only ever seen Soren in two different sets of clothes. No, he'd only seen him in two different shirts. The roll neck jumper he wore like a tunic and the long t-shirt he was wearing now.

"Nearby." Soren's enigmatic reply cut through his thoughts, ceasing any further thoughts about his state of living. He clearly didn't want to talk about this any longer. Ike change the topic.

"I've just been to a meeting with Stefan and he told me to look out for you," he said, "Do you know each other?"

"Is this an interrogation?" Soren demanded, putting his other sandal on the floor beside him to dry.

"No, I'm just trying to have a conversation," Ike replied. Soren blinked at him and then resumed his staring. Ike wasn't quite sure what he'd done that was so surprising but evidently he'd done something to cause a reaction.

"No, I do not know him," Soren's tone had become venomous, Ike wondered whether that anger was directed at him or Stefan, "I do not care to know him either. He thinks himself as a support and useful but he in fact a nuisance. He does have the sense to be subtle however. His knowledge of the inner passages of the school can get annoying. People say he appears out of nowhere and it gives him a level of infamy that appears to have gone to his head."

"He's a really good teacher," Ike pointed out, "But yeah, he does appear out of nowhere a lot."

"I wouldn't know. The magic teachers here are rather abysmal, they are too concerned with health and safety. They neglect to remember the school does have a nurse."

"Is that why you read a lot of extra books?" Ike cast another look at the table. None of those were about magic.

"That is one of many reasons," Soren said, the irritation in his voice fading, "I am taking the opportunities given me. It is a blessing to have a reasonable grounding in most areas of knowledge in case a situation arises in which such knowledge is needed."

"That's very sensible, you must have a really good memory to keep it all fresh in your mind."

Soren stared at him again. Ike had yet to work out all the reasons he fell silent but he was beginning to get the idea that Soren didn't know how to deal with compliments. Yes, he was very sure in his own abilities but perhaps it was rather rare for others to pick up on his talent. He didn't have parents and if he disagreed with his teachers, who else was going to praise him? Ike made a mental note to do it more often.

It took a long time for Soren to speak again. The chatter filling the rest of the library distracted Ike as he waited for a response.

_"Have you heard? There's a police man going round the school asking questions!"_

**"I'm so excited for the mage tourney on Wednesday, they say it's going to be Castle of War."**

**"Ooh, with mages too? Do you think it'll catch fire?"**

_"Really?"_

**"Of course not! It's probably enchanted not to. But you'll never guess what."**

_"Yeah, and he's not a Crimean policeman either. I heard that Mia heard from Mr Zihark that he could from Begnion."_

_"What's a Begnion officer doing here? I thought they were really racist so the head didn't let them in."_

**"What?"**

_"Maybe there's a criminal in the school! That would be exciting."_

_"_**The school's getting visitors from the Crimean Royal Police Force! They say Duke of Fayre is going to judging the last stages of the mage tourney and Police General Geoffrey is going to be given advanced…"**

_"Of course there's a criminal in the school. Have you counted the number of thieves we have?"_

"Are you listening in as well?"

Ike turned to Soren who seemed to have calmed down from whatever mood had caused him to glare.

"Yeah, were you?"

"You can learn an incredible amount from listening to gossip," Soren replied, "You just have to have the sense to pick out the truth from the fabrications.. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have yet to eat this lunch time. Good bye."

With that he swept out of the library before Ike had so much as said his farewells.


	9. Games and Sports

**Chapter Nine: Games and Sports**

Ike sort of understood why Soren disliked like school tourneys so much. As soon as rumour got out that he would be a commander in the Castle at War he was assaulted from all angles with bribes and threats concerning who people wanted to win. After his previous encounters with the Dawn Brigade they stuck out as particularly zealous about their commander. Micaiah was tipped as a firm favourite for this competition. She had a whole army of fans who were enamoured with her obsession with charity. Though this was of course commendable, Ike had to wonder why such a seemingly humble person needed such a large crowd and such a pushy one at that. He took solace in the library where he chose the lesser of two evils and let Soren talk down the tournament to his heart's content. It was good to hear Soren express his opinions without anyone being offended or attempting to offend him. Of course all of Soren's complaints were undermined by the fact Soren was actually going to be competing in the Castle at War tomorrow. He may be complaining about the system but he was still taking part. Ike let him talk uninterrupted however. Soren didn't have anyone else who would simply listen to him. It was probably a good idea.

Tension mounted approaching the event, Mist having been only one of hundreds of students who had produced banners, let alone t-shirts, scarves, badges and leaflets. Considering they had a tournament every month or two, you would have thought they would have got used to the festivities. However it had been three years since the latest mage tourney so perhaps it was the magical element that made everyone so excited. Ike didn't really know but he thought a duel between mages would be pretty amazing to look at. He'd definitely watch the later rounds. The last round of any tourney was always a duel between the finalists. Ike could imagine Soren getting that far, probably out-witting his opponent in the end. He'd never actually seen Soren cast any magic but he wouldn't get all those high scores without any reason behind them.

It was because of this reasoning that Ike thought he didn't really need to wish Soren good luck as he went to line up in the contestants' area. He did so anyway, which caused a slight frown on Soren's part but no comment, before he left to go and find Stefan. The Castle of War structure was five stories high and made entirely of wood. Ike knew they hired a laguz construction company to get it all up so fast. They also must have employed a lot of mages. Every inch of the wood was covered in some kind of magical rune, probably to stop the wood being blow apart, set on fire, or wrecked by any other means. The whole thing looked rather old so Ike was rather glad they were there. He noticed Rhys and a small cluster of clerics standing at one side in a white marquee. Stefan seemed to notice where he was looking.

"Everyone going into that castle will be given a rune pendant," he said loudly so all the assembled adversaries could hear, "If you are in too much pain to continue , or your wounds seem particularly severe, wrap your hand round the rune and pull. This will warp you straight into the medical tent which you can see behind you. May I remind you all that killing someone in a competition still counts as murder. Wound, distract, annoy but not kill, remember that or you're going to get worse than expelled. Right, form into the three groups for each stage. Kings or Queens of the Castle up front please."

Ike took his position. From the other 'Kings' or 'Queens' he guessed that the three rounds were skills-based. He did't recognise the other two which meant they weren't in Higher Swordsmanship. It was possible that he was being put in for a more challenging round. Maybe he'd come against Soren, Soren had passed the first round with flying colours.

Round one was called and the first little group of enemies made their way inside to take their positions. They were a mixture of swordsmen and women with those training to be thieves and rogues. Apparently there was a treasure element to the game as well though Stefan hadn't really explained that. It probably excused the thieves however.

Ike was left with his thoughts as rounds one and two took place. They took about an hour and a half each. The castle was solid wood with only the occasional window, so a running commentary was kept up so everyone knew what the mages were doing inside. Ike also had a good view of the medical tent. Two boys, one a thief and the other a mage, appeared there during the first round, and three sword-users, all girls, appeared in the second. This left Ike wondering if he should be worried. He was King of the Castle after all. On the other hand it didn't seem like either the King or Queen of the last rounds had appeared injured. When mages took the throne room their names were read out in order and points attributed to each. Those with the higher points got through to the next round. Ike didn't hear Soren's name, or Micaiah's or Pelleas' come to think of it, once during the first two rounds. He was probably going to end up facing at least two of them, though Pelleas may not have made it to the castle if Sothe had locked him up in a cupboard again.

Ike considered asking Stefan if he could go and look for Pelleas when round two ended.

"In you go," ordered Stefan and they all filed inside.

The inside of the castle was unexpectedly grand. It reminded Ike of a children's playhouse, but a castle version. Everything was there, statues, paintings, a long carpet…but they were all made out of wood and painted to look realistic. The throne had been painted gold. Ike felt rather silly as he sat on it, Mia laughed at him as she closed the door behind him. That was the last he saw of Mia for a while. As soon as the door was closed everything was silent. Ike grasped his sword (a wooden replica for the purpose of the tournament) and sat there, unaware of what he should do now. He couldn't hear anything. Not even a starting whistle, or the cheers of the crowd. He wondered if being a real King was equally unnerving.

After what he thought was half an hour he started periodically checking his watch. After what he thought was an hour exactly, he heard noises from the door. He considered getting up and trying to hear what was going on but then remembered he was meant to be treasuring the throne. One hour and ten minutes past, the door opened and Ike heard footsteps.

"Hi Soren."

"You are the least intimidating King I have ever encountered," Soren replied. He had a wind tome in one hand and was faintly panting. Ike wondered how many people he'd injured.

"Am I supposed say 'grr' or something?" Ike replied, "And how many Kings have you encountered?"

"None," Soren said lightly, "And I don't think 'grr' is quite right, Kings don't tend to be bears. You're supposed to give some arrogant melodramatic speech about your own superiority and how I'm going to fall here after getting so far."

"That doesn't sound like me at all," Ike said

Soren actually smiled.

"No, it doesn't. Now, shall we-" He stopped talking very abruptly. He had been walking towards Ike, tome aloft but as he stopped talking he also stepped back.

"Ike, I don't think the castle is as stable as it once was."

"What do you mean?" Ike asked, following his gaze and looking over the back of his throne.

"The woodwork is coming apart behind the throne. This whole room could become structurally unstable and endanger the lives of everyone in this castle."

"Oh," Ike got up from the throne and hastily went to go and see where the problem lay. By the time he'd realised there was nothing of the sort, Soren was in his throne.

"Hey!" Though Ike felt rather cheated, this deception was probably well worth it to see Soren smile quite so mischievously. Ike had never seen him look so happy.

"In all honesty, my wind tome was out of uses," Soren said, a hint of humour in his tone, "Also it isn't against the rules to win by deception. They do not call it deception but tactical prowess often includes blatant lies"

"I guess so," Ike went round to the throne and sat on the plinth. He couldn't help but think Soren looked very regal sat up high like that, one leg crossed over the other. He was just about to say so when the door began to creak open again.

"Lie on the floor." Soren whispered.

"What?"

"Lie on the floor. Don't question. Lie down."

Ike did as he was told just in time for Soren to announce

"You took your time Mic- I mean, good day Pelleas."

Ike sat up again. Indeed Pelleas had just appeared in the hall. There was a bizarre purple haze about him that smelt like Mist's cooking. It dissipated as he approached, looking about the room in case there were other mages there.

"I thought Micaiah would be here too," he commented, approaching the throne and lowering his tome. He too sat on the plinth at Soren's feet but then gave a defeated sigh.

"Sothe is going to kill me."

"Have you thought about defending yourself?" Soren suggested curtly.

"If I use magic on him, I'll probably murder him," said Pelleas, "Or really wound him at least. I don't want to be kicked out of school otherwise I'd have nowhere to go."

"What do you mean?" Ike asked, "I thought you lived somewhere in Daein."

"I do, but if it wasn't for the Headmaster I wouldn't have had the money to live with after I worked out…discovered... well everyone found out what happened."

"So you've actually met the Headmaster?" Ike asked with interest. It was true, everyone knew about Pelleas' family situation, though no one had learnt the names of who his parents actually were. All they knew was that for one moment Pelleas was accommodated and sent a fortune from a Daein aristocrat claiming to be his mother, and then suddenly it was revealed that he had been politically used and the aristocratic woman had dropped all contact with him as if he would damage her. The story didn't help, and probably was the cause of, how much he was bullied. Though Ike reckoned being a newcomer to the Dawn Brigade only hurt his chances.

"Twice," said Pelleas, "He's a really kind man. He didn't even care that I was a Spirit Charmer."

"What actually is a Spirit Charmer?"

"You makes a trade with spirits to gain the ability to use dark magic," Pelleas explained eagerly, "It means you have magic not many have, also you get a mark…" He moved his fringe aside to reveal an oval shape with two lines through it.

"It looks like a curvier version of Soren's mark," Ike replied.

"Well I don't think one's soul is an adequate exchange for an interesting mark and magic that will drive you slowly insane." Soren commented. His gaze was fixed on the door and he seemed to have been passively listening to the conversation until now.

"So you're not a Spirit Charmer?" Pelleas asked of him. Soren ignored him in preference of greeting the latest arrival.

"You're late. I suppose you tried to heal everyone you injured?"

"I suppose you left them to suffer," Micaiah retorted, brushing her hair out of her eyes before inspecting the scene before her. Soren was still sitting imperiously on the throne with Ike and Pelleas at his feet.

"Actually none of my spells made direct contact with anyone," Soren replied, "The great thing about wind magic is its very good for knocking people aside. No one I faced needed healing, my method kept injuries to a minimum, avoided additional damage, and got me here the fastest. A better tactical move anyone would say."

"So how did you get Ike off the throne?" Micaiah bit back, "I can see your tome is empty. Did you bribe him? Or was it your special bond that let you…"

"They're always like this," Pelleas gave a nervous laugh, "You should try working on group projects with them in Advanced classes. It's a nightmare." He shuffled a bit closer to Ike and gestured to the corner of the room. Ike took the suggestion and they moved to give the quarrelling mages more space.

"I don't know how it happened," said Pelleas, shrugging, "For months they were simply ignoring each other. They were polite, passing work sheets around, pleases and thank yous, but that was all they said to each other. Then suddenly something must have clicked. It was a few weeks ago actually. It was as if they'd had an epiphany or…divine intervention or something. It wasn't the scores that did it but for some reason they just started quarrelling at every opportunity. Especially on moral and ethical matters, we talk about those a lot in our theory classes. They're like…two cat laguz shut in a box together. You get the feeling if you don't keep them apart they will bring out the claws and start pulling each other's hair out."

"Micaiah's quite optimistic and Soren isn't," Ike thought aloud.

"True," Pelleas replied, "But that doesn't explain all that 'special-bond' talk Micaiah's been going on about. Also she really doesn't like you and Soren defends you to the teeth when you get brought up in their arguments."

"You think I should step in?" Ike asked, thinking of anti-bullying crusades, but there didn't seem to be any bullying going on here, or at least he couldn't tell who the victim was.

"They'll sort themselves out," Pelleas sighed and looked at his own feet. Just then the door opened again and two mages entered. Ike didn't' recognise them but judging by the fact they saw Soren and Micaiah bickering and immediately went to the opposite end of the room, they were likely sharing a class with the arguing two. Pelleas had however given Ike a lot more to think about. Despite being so withdrawn and contrary, Soren would defend him to the teeth if need be? Smiling, he watched the rest of the mages trickle in. When their audience grew great enough Soren and Micaiah stopped arguing and kept to themselves. They drifted further apart the greater the number of people and by the time everyone was there, it was as if the argument had never happened.

"That's how it always is," Pelleas replied when Ike pointed this out.

Oscar's cooking seemed to be motivation enough for Soren to walk home with their little group. Usually he only showed up for work but a combination between Mist's incessant pleading for him to come to a victory dinner and Ike's insistence that he could work afterwards if he wanted. Soren had mumbled something about it was nice not to cook for himself for a change and that he could work whilst eating dinner and had given in to their insistences that he should walk home with them. At the mention of cooking for himself Mist had asked after Soren's parents. To cover the awkward silence Ike had pointed out two interesting looking cars and was thankfully saved from making a fool of himself by Oscar arriving, meeting them halfway home.

However Ike's daily dose of awkwardness was not over yet. Usually Soren was quite fleet-footed however he certainly seemed to be lagging behind right now. Perhaps to avoid Mist's questions, perhaps to avoid the lively conversation ahead of them, whatever the reason Ike kept pace with him leaving the pair of them a little way behind the rest. They walked alongside the side of the road on a stretch without pavement. Opposite the road was a patch of woods which led all the way to their little hamlet. It was a longer and more winding route than following the road, but they had taken it on occasion. Soren however seemed not to be able to take his eyes off the woods. He kept glancing around trees, as if trying to track something. Ike couldn't see what was so preoccupying him, though he had wondered whether those bright red eyes were keener than his own.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"There are some very large beorc footprints in the woods. I was simply wondering whose they were."

"Probably just some hiker or nature-lover" Ike said.

"They're heading the same way as we are," Soren stopped momentarily and Ike almost walked into him. They stood there for a moment before Soren started walking again at a much faster pace. He seemed to be chasing something, going as far as dipping in and out of the wooded area.

"What is it?" Ike did his best to keep up but Soren was looking here there and everywhere . What was he doing?

"Whoever moved through here was incredibly large for a beorc," said Soren, "Look how much they've trampled, and they've clearly scraped bark off the trees. They must have been in heavy armour."

Ike couldn't see and still didn't see how it was relevant.

"We should catch up with the others," he said, "The only thing down here for miles is where we live. Maybe Gatrie went for a walk drunk and got a bit lost."

"It's possible." Soren didn't sound convinced and remained brooding for the rest of the evening. Even whilst eating with a ravenous nature even to rival Ike's, he kept his eyes on the table. When he disappeared with Ike's father into his study after dessert Ike wondered if the footprints were still on his mind and he thought best to warn his father about it. Personally they didn't seem particularly threatening. What would anyone want with a very normal force of hire company in a very normal out of town hamlet? Still, a level of discontent settled over the house as Ike tried to get on with that night's homework. As he looked at diagrams for sword technique he remembered that Stefan would be leaving in the next few days quite without explanation.

Was something going on that he wasn't aware of? Well yes, many things probably were, but were they going to affect him? Would they affect Soren and this weird sort-of bond they now had? There was no way he could really know after all. Perhaps he should consider the mystery that was Soren before he started wondering about the wider world.


End file.
